


Not all those who wander are lost

by Evil_Keshi



Category: Shadowhunters (TV)
Genre: Action, Alternate Universe - Anastasia Fusion, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Drama, Enemies to Lovers, Getting Together, M/M, Mutual Pining, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-27
Updated: 2019-02-10
Packaged: 2019-07-03 11:34:52
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 19
Words: 73,036
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15818067
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Evil_Keshi/pseuds/Evil_Keshi
Summary: For years, Alec and Izzy had tried to findthe one, the one man who would play the role of the long lost son of Asmodeus, King of Edom, to perfection. Meeting Magnus, who knew nothing about his past but felt inexplicably drawn to Edom, was a true miracle. However, fighting Edom's enemies and catching feelings was more than either of them had bargained for.





	1. Prologue

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone and welcome on this new rollercoaster with me! This time, I'm playing with an Anastasia!AU and I hope you'll have as much fun reading it as I am, writing it. Just a little note: for those who know me, you probably know I like to stick to one POV throughout the story... I'm experimenting a bit in this, so you'll get chapters from Alec's POV as well as Magnus'. I hope you'll enjoy the result!  
> (Also, the title is a quote from J.R.R. Tolkien's poem _All that is gold does not glitter_.)

  


"Magnus!" Alec screamed, running after the young man sprinting through the courtyard of the palace, his heart beating too fast with panic. "Stop!"

Magnus didn't answer, didn't even react to his desperate call. Ignoring the pain that came with the exertion and pulsed through his bandaged arm, Alec forced his legs to run faster on the thin layer of snow, to catch up before something really bad happened: he had to protect Magnus, because Alec was the only one to have an idea of how much danger he was in at this instant. Of course Magnus hadn't stood behind that door long enough to listen to the whole conversation... After hearing the first part, Alec understood how hurt the young man must have felt - because of him, because he was a _coward_ for not telling him sooner - and he understood why he had run away. Still, the worst had only been said after his departure and Magnus knew nothing about it.

"Magnus!" Alec tried again, his voice pleading, echoing against the columns of the square courtyard, too beautiful a place to witness such heartbreak, "Please, wait!"

Maybe _please_ truly was a magic word, for Magnus suddenly skidded to a stop, allowing Alec to come at his level - except that the young man turned around to face him, anger and pain dancing furiously in his eyes. There was the fiery man Alec had grown to know and love. He just hadn't expected that one day, he would be the one subjected to such fury.

"You lied to me, Alexander," Magnus seethed, although the hurt pierced through the hostility, "You lied to me!"

"Please, Magnus," Alec urged him on, "We can discuss this somewhere else, somewhere safer. You can't stay here, it's too dangerous!"

He tried to put his hand on Magnus' shoulder to steer him in the right direction, behind the arches of the courtyard at least, but the young man slapped his hand away and took a step back.

"Why should I believe you?" he asked coldly. "You lied to me. You've been lying from the start! You said you wanted to help me!"

"I did!" Alec insisted, although he knew it hadn't started like that, not at first, "I brought you here, didn't I?"

He gestured at the courtyard around them and beyond, to the illuminated windows of the palace. They had walked through these luxurious rooms hand in hand, earlier, marvelling at the crystal chandeliers, the pineapple damask, the rose wood and its gilded carvings... How fast could a night, a life, change? Too fast. Magnus and he both knew even the blink of an eye could last long enough to utterly destroy someone.

"You brought me here, that's true," Magnus admitted, his voice softening before it took a hard edge again, "but you did it all for the money! Or was it out of misplaced guilt?"

"That is not true!" Alec protested, remorse gnawing at his insides, pain biting at his heart, yet he knew that Magnus had every right to be angry.

In spite of this, they couldn't stay out there in the open any longer. Alec couldn't forget about the looming threat, not even when Magnus was so opposed to listening to him: for his own safety, Alec wouldn't hesitate to forcefully take him away. Not like Magnus could hate him any more than he did right now... Still, he tried the nicer way one last time.

"I promise I'll tell you everything," he swore, his voice soft, "but not here. We have to leave, _now_."

"What else did you lie about?" Magnus asked, ignoring his words, sounding vulnerable all of a sudden. "What we shared... Was it even real?"

Alec didn't need to ask what he meant. He knew. The embraces, the soft words spoken to each other at the back of the car while Izzy drove, the nights spent with Magnus' head on his lap, the kiss... He wanted to say yes, it was real, but that would be a truth Magnus might not even believe. Still, Alec wouldn't have kissed him if he didn't feel this strongly about him...

He wanted to tell Magnus this and so much more, but he didn't have the time. His gaze suddenly zeroed in on Magnus' chest, rising in short, unsteady moves due to his anger, but the young man's erratic breathing was not what he was worried about. More concerning was the immobile red dot on his heart.

Alec didn't even turn around to try to locate the sniper, he knew he wouldn't have the time and Magnus would be dead before he could even see him. He reacted in the only logical way he could think of. He ran forward, wrapped Magnus in a protective embrace, because he wasn't going to fail him like his father had, so long ago, and Alec used his own body like a shield. Pain shot through his chest and he fell in the snow with Magnus, losing his breath before they even collapsed on the cold cobblestones of the ground.

"Alexander... No!"

Anger forgotten, terrified hands that were wet with blood cupped his face.

"Stay with me," Magnus begged, "You idiot, why did you... Please, please, stay with me!"

Alec tried to fight the pain and the exhaustion, tried to smile, tried to reassure the younger man, tried to make him understand that it was okay, because Magnus was safe and that was the only thing that mattered. Before he managed to say anything though, Magnus' scared face underneath him turned in a blur and Alec closed his eyes.

"Alexander!"

  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Playing with flash-forward is great :D
> 
> Let me know what you think so far and I'll see you soon, hopefully!


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm baaaack! Thank you for your comments on the prologue! Now it is time to find out what happened to lead to that moment and I hope you'll enjoy this ride with me! :)

  


Ten days earlier

Idris was a beautiful land and especially so during the winter, when the ground was covered in thick layers of snow that crunched beneath one's steps. The cars passed by slowly, with drivers careful not to get in an accident, and the change of pace in traffic made life in Idris all the more enjoyable. Kids took out their sledges, giggled and screamed as they slid down the streets, hot chocolates and seasonal, spicy teas replaced special iced coffees in both homes and coffeehouses, and the crisp air that froze fingertips and turned noses red was invigorating.

Yet, Magnus was sick of Idris.

Magnus didn't see anything worthy of staying in Idris anymore, to be honest, and the gorgeous winter sceneries weren't that motivating either. Ever since he'd woken up in the orphanage many years ago without any idea of how he had actually gotten there and even worse, no idea of who he was, all the new memories he had made there always betrayed the same truth. His life in Idris was a disaster.

The first six years - or so, because time was a big issue in the mess of his life - of his existence were a blur. He didn't remember much from before he woke up, surrounded by curious and worried faces alike, asking him if he knew his own name. His kid self had burst into tears, crying out for his mother, for his father, before he started sobbing harder because he couldn't remember who his parents were. He knew he had parents, he could feel their presence somewhere in his memories... He just couldn't put a face to the foggy silhouettes in his mind that he thought he called _mom_ and _dad_ before.

Magnus had been forced to create himself from scratch and choosing his own name had been the first step. Admitting that he might never know what had happened in the past to land him in an orphanage was still a work in progress, though. Maybe, if he left Idris, he could start to really build himself...

He didn't have any ties to this country anymore, not that he'd ever had many. The orphanage brought back too many bad memories, children picking on the nameless new kid, cold beds that couldn't warm up his tiny frame, toys being shared around but never with him. School hadn't been much better for Magnus, who'd often felt like he didn't belong. He was fourteen the first time he considered leaving Idris behind and running away to find another life somewhere else.

For the past two years, the only reason he had remained in Idris was because of his lover... However, Camille had brought with her more bad memories and heartbreak than the orphanage and school combined.

Now though, Magnus was twenty-one (or so) and he needed a real life. He wanted adventure and he knew exactly where he wanted to go to get it - which, by an unfortunate twist of fate, was also the one place he probably would never manage to reach, as proved the document in his hand politely but firmly announcing that his request to cross the border to Edom had been denied.

"Shitty administration," he grumbled as he crossed the street, fresh snow falling onto his shoulders and his beanie as he headed for the closest bar.

He needed a drink to dull his disappointment after receiving the negative answer: he had hoped, so long and so hard, that he would get every authorisation he needed... He had known from the start that it wasn't an easy process but he had also spent most of what little money he had to make sure that every document would be filled and sent in due time, and all of this for what? Nothing.

The golden bells above the door jingled as Magnus entered the bar, a gush of cold air and snowflakes following him, and he clomped toward the counter to sit, shoulders hunched under his old coat, his whole body showing how miserable he felt.

"What can I get you?" the barista asked from somewhere across the counter, his joyful voice not at all deterred by Magnus' sad attitude.

"A martini," he groaned without looking up, before he remembered some of his manners and added, "Please."

Chuckles answered him as he took of his beanie and unbuttoned his coat. This time, Magnus lifted his head, wondering what was so funny for the guy: the blond barista was openly mocking him, as it seemed, his blue and brown eyes crinkling with laughter he wasn't even trying to conceal.

"What?" Magnus asked, hesitating between getting defensive or self-conscious.

"This is a coffee shop," the barista revealed with a smirk, "not a bar. No alcohol in here."

Magnus glanced around and realised that yes, the warmth and cosiness of the decor fit a coffee shop better than a bar, before he put his head down on the counter with a thump and a deep sigh. Just his luck. Now the barista, whose nametag introduced him as Jace, would laugh at him for the rest of his life and would tell his future patrons how one day, an idiot had stumbled into his establishment and asked for a martini. This wasn't quite the way Magnus had expected or wished to be remembered in the world.

"Sorry," he said to Jace. "I was... distracted, I guess."

"It's alright," the blond man answered with a shrug. "I can still make you something to drink... I'd recommend a hot chocolate, you look like you need some warmth and happiness in your life today. Chocolate does wonder for that."

Jace didn't wait for Magnus to agree: he moved behind the counter and juggled the milk, a spoon, whipped cream and chocolate on a stick, until he presented the young man with a fuming mug of milk in which the square block of chocolate was slowly melting. The sweet scent of the hot drink drifting to Magnus' nostrils immediately made him relax a little.

"Uh... Thanks," the young man said a bit haltingly. "Sorry if... I was rude before."

"You weren't," Jace shrugged. "A bit grumpy, that's all. I can deal with grumpy."

Magnus' cheeks burned with shame and he dove into his hot chocolate until his tongue was the burning one. He felt slightly better then.

"You look like crap," Jace told him, brutally honest. "Talk to me, what's wrong?"

"Why?" Magnus asked in surprise. "We're not friends."

"Nope," the blond man agreed, "but I'm your barista. I'm here for you, if only for ten minutes. Cheapest therapist you'll ever find, I come at the price of one hot chocolate!"

Jace's babbling actually got him a smile from Magnus and the young man took one more sip of his drink before he began to talk. After all, if he was stuck in Idris for the rest of his life, it was about damn time he started to make some friends.

"I want to leave the country," he eventually revealed.

"Okay?" Jace answered, looking a bit confused, "So? What's the problem?"

"I want to go to Edom."

"Oh," the barista said softly, sporting an apologetic expression that meant Jace perfectly understood Magnus' struggle. "You know that the border is closed, right? Ever since..."

"Ever since the tragic event fifteen years ago, blah blah blah, I know," Magnus grumbled.

Who had never heard of it? Fifteen years prior, during a diplomatic visit from Asmodeus, King of Edom, to Idris... His young son had been kidnapped. To this day, no one knew who had been behind the abduction and even though the car used to kidnap the only heir to the throne of Edom had been found quite quickly, it had not helped in any way: the car had crashed into a tree on the edge of the road, killing the driver instantly. The child had vanished.

In his despair, Asmodeus had blamed Idris for the kidnapping. Cue Idris' anger at the accusation and then, the refusal to allow the King to send his own men to investigate... Which had only reinforced Asmodeus' conviction that Idris was somehow involved in the kidnapping, maybe even the murder, of his son - although he had never been able to prove it. Idris had not forgotten nor forgiven the outrage and ever since these days, the border had been closed.

"Well," Jace said, "I know there are several administrative procedures to go through in order to receive the authorisation to cross to Edom. Have you tried those?"

"Yes," Magnus answered, aware that his voice sounded pitifully sad, "I just got a _thank you for trying but nope_ letter."

Jace patted his shoulder in sympathy, a gesture that surprised Magnus more than he could have explained with words. He wasn't used to kindness and even though the blond man had implied that it came with the job, Magnus was ninety-nine per cent certain that Jace was sincere. It felt good.

"Why Edom, though?" Jace wondered. "It would be easier to go literally anywhere else... What made you choose the hard way?"

Magnus nearly grumbled that the hard way had chosen _him_ since he was a kid but he refrained from doing so just in time: Jace didn't have to be the victim of his bad mood, not when he looked genuinely concerned.

"Long story," he ended up saying in a sigh. "I feel... drawn there."

Magnus fidgeted a little on his barstool, a bit uncomfortable as always when he admitted to himself that the thought of Edom felt right in his mind. He couldn't explain why, because he had around six years worth of lost memories... In which he would probably find the key to understand why he felt like there was something for him in Edom, if only he could remember this lost chunk of his past.

In an old reflex, Magnus twisted the ring around his finger. Maybe the key was there, at least partly. When he had woken up at the orphanage, this ring engraved with the letter A, slipped on a silver chain around his neck, was the only hint that he had a past... Somewhere he came from, somewhere he could go back to. The thought was both comforting, for even in his situation he could cling to that small hope, but also disheartening. What if he never pierced the mystery of this ring?

"You really want to get to Edom?" Jace asked on a weird tone, one that sounded hesitant but also trying to find out how determined Magnus actually was.

"Yes," the young man told him with a firm nod.

He wanted answers. He _needed_ them. Maybe nothing satisfying would even result from his trip to Edom but at least, he would feel better with the knowledge that he had tried.

On the other side of his hot chocolate, slowly turning lukewarm, the barista was staring at him with intent, as if he was trying to understand something. What though, Magnus couldn't tell, and he was about to ask when the blond man spoke up.

"Look," Jace said, looking like he'd finally made an important decision, "I know a guy who could maybe help you. For the right price."

"I... I don't have much," Magnus admitted, "and I'm not sure I want to get involved into shady business."

"Alec won't ask for money," Jace told him with a shrug.

He didn't comment on the shady business part though, so Magnus believed he was right to assume that what the barista was suggesting flirted dangerously with illegality. If Jace's... friend? Acquaintance? Whoever this Alec was to him, if he wasn't asking for money in exchange, then what could he possibly be interested in?

"I'm not whoring myself out either," Magnus warned the barista, his voice a bit colder this time. "I'm not _that_ desperate."

Jace guffawed at that and Magnus pursed his lips.

"He won't ask for that either," the blond said after a while, once he managed to speak without breaking in a fit of giggles again. "You are totally his type, though."

"Reassuring," Magnus shot back dryly.

"Seriously," Jace added, all trace of laughter disappearing, "Alec is a great guy. I won't say he's totally clean, because he's not, but I'm pretty sure one look at your face will get him to help you. He'll be even more inclined to if he knows you heard of him from me."

"Right..." Magnus mumbled, still not fully convinced.

"Look, you can either try Alec or find another way to Edom yourself," Jace concluded, not unkindly. "I'm just saying you'll have better chances if you have Alec in your corner. The decision's up to you."

The barista was right. Magnus could even agree to meet this Alec and then make his final decision... If he didn't trust this guy at all, then he could still say no and find another way, like Jace had said - although he didn't have much hope to cross the border on his own.

"Okay," he finally said with a sigh. "Where do I find this guy?"

  


  


Jace had given him the name of a bar and its address, in a narrow alley at the centre of the city. The Hunter's moon. The sign hanging next to the door, consisting in a wolf howling to a red moon, made a shudder run up Magnus' back: the full moon depicted on the wood looked too red. Like blood.

To top it all, the slats of the blinds at the windows were closed and Magnus couldn't even see what was happening inside the bar. All in all, it didn't amount to anything too pleasant or safe. Shit, what the hell was he doing? Following a stranger's advice just because he'd been kind to him... What if these two were working together and that was their strategy?

Jace showed empathy and compassion to the lost souls who staggered into his coffee shop, offered them a drink - _it's on the house!_ the barista had told Magnus when he'd tried to pay for his hot chocolate before leaving, _good luck!_ \- and then he listened to their troubles and suggested Alec as a solution. Alec, who was probably an awful man who reaped profits from the people Jace sent to him.

He could bail out, Magnus mused. No contract tied him to these guys, he didn't have to enter the Hunter's moon if he didn't feel like it - if he was scared. No, no, no, he wasn't scared. Still, he admitted that he felt just a tiny bit intimidated at the prospect of meeting that man, whom he knew nothing about except his first name.

Magnus took a step back, this close to leave without even going inside, when he realised something. Since Jace and Alec most likely worked together, maybe the barista had told his accomplice to expect a visitor tonight. If Magnus didn't show up... How could he be sure that they wouldn't send someone after him?

Heaving a resigned sigh that rose in the air in small puffs of vapour, the young man rubbed his hands together to warm them up. Alright. He had waited outside long enough. If he didn't like this Alec, he could still leave... Probably. Hopefully?

Bracing himself for what was to come, knowing he would hate himself if he didn't try and at least heard what Alec had to offer, Magnus pulled open the door of the bar and stepped inside. The atmosphere in the Hunter's moon was actually nicer and more welcoming than the facade let on, so he guessed that was a better start than expected. Christmas Carols played on the radio, softly, and Magnus tried to be subtle as he observed the people sitting and drinking - foamy beers, colourful cocktails, scented teas. It definitively didn't seem like the den of dangerous criminals but it also didn't look like the place where a perfect family with two kids and half would choose to have a coffee with a slice of pie in the afternoon.

The young man rolled his shoulders back and forced himself to take a deep, grounding breath. He had to look like he belonged, like he knew what he wanted and what he could get out of this meeting. When he felt self-confident enough to walk up to the bartender and not run away, Magnus took steady steps towards the woman currently mixing up a Bloody Mary and waited until she was done to catch her attention.

"Excuse me?" he called.

"Yeah?" she said, turning to him with a friendly smile that put him a bit more at ease, "What can I get you?"

"Whatever's on tap," Magnus answered a bit randomly, unable to care about that at the moment.

He wasn't even sure he would actually drink anything, he didn't want to upset his stomach already churning with nerves. He managed to smile at the bartender and paid for his beer, before he added, praying that he wasn't making a huge mistake:

"Hey, could you tell me where I can find Alec?"

"Alec?" she repeated, although she didn't sound surprised. "Sure, he's over there, the guy in black."

She pointed at a man sitting alone in the back of the large room, who seemed quite focused as he read through files with an empty glass in front of him. He was indeed dressed all in black, from his turtleneck to his shoes, and Magnus was probably crazy for moving forward and breaking the guy's silent and deep concentration... but he did. As he reached the table, Magnus didn't fail to notice that the other patrons in this bar were sitting further away from Alec, as if they didn't want to be seen near him and risk someone thinking they were somehow acquainted.

"Hey," he squeaked, then cleared his throat and added, "Uh... Are you Alexander?"

The man's reaction was immediate, just like Jace had told him it would be. The barista had given him Alec's full name along with the promise that the man would know Magnus had landed there with Jace's help and would thus agree to listen to him. More concerning was the _He'll see your face and agree to anything anyway_ added on a quiet tone right after that. Magnus still wasn't sure that Alec would not ask for payment in nature...

All worrying thoughts about evil plans vanished when Alec looked up though, only to be replaced with other, messier ideas. Alexander didn't look anything like Magnus had expected. Well, maybe he didn't know what a criminal looked like exactly but still, he thought that this man was too handsome to be one.

Magnus noticed the eyes, two large pools of hazel that zeroed in on his face, not missing the smallest detail of it. The brows, rising in wonder then arching with eager interest that he didn't dare interpret. The hair, dark and messy, giving him the strong urge to reach out and check for himself if it felt as fluffy as it seemed to the eye. Alec was also younger than Magnus had imagined, probably only a few years older than him, and it made him wonder why and how such a man would even find himself in this kind of business in the first place.

Then, he actually realised that this guy was not there for him to admire or muse on but to take care of far more dangerous matters. It showed in his attitude: Alec looked like he was ready to bolt at any second, aware of everything going on around him at all times, his gaze following every other person's movements. He was clearly on the lookout for anything unusual and potentially threatening, while still focusing on Magnus - who didn't quite know what to say. How did one start a conversation with someone like that?

Thankfully for him, Alec was the one to stark talking.

"So you've met Jace, uh?" he chuckled. "I am Alexander, yes. And who are you?"

"Magnus," he answered in a heartbeat, glad to find his voice again. "Jace said you might be able to help me out."

Alec chuckled again and motioned for Magnus to sit in front of him, which he did carefully, feeling as if he was jumping straight into a trap set by these hazel eyes, oblivious to anything else.

"Jace says a lot of things," Alec told him with a smirk. "Maybe he's right though, who knows? What are you looking for? Why did you come to me, Magnus?"

The young man blinked and swallowed before he could even think of answering that question, trying not to focus on the way Alec had said his name, his lips parting and joining around the letters.

It made him a little mad that this mouth kept him from thinking about the important matters he had to consider... Because that was it. If he started to talk, there would be no going back: Alec would suggest a solution, as well as a payment, and Magnus would be forced to go through with it.

He had no idea what he was getting into but he had to try, so Magnus breathed out slowly, trying to calm his nervous heartbeat.

"I want to go to Edom."

Magnus wasn't sure whether the grin on Alec's face was a good sign or not. He guessed it was too late to change his mind now, though... He could only wait and see.

  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! As always, thoughts are much appreciated! See you next time ;)


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone! If you follow me on Twitter, you already know why this update is late (and I apologise!) I can't promise the next chapters will be updated weekly again but I think so, at least if I stop panicking and feeling self-conscious about my work, ahem. Anyway, enjoy this chapter from Alec's POV! :)

  


Alec had been minding his own business at the back of the Hunter's moon like most evenings, not batting an eyelash at the people who came to sit nearby, then realised that he was there and moved a bit further away. Dismissing them as the usual patrons, he kept reading, his right hand clenched on his leg, close to his thigh holster, and his brows furrowed as he turned the page in front of him.

Crap. If they didn't find someone quickly, Izzy and he would be running out of time. Hell, Asmodeus had doubled the promised reward for the return of his son, so _he_ was running out of time. They had to hurry before it was too late but fate seemed to enjoy working against them at the moment... Izzy and he had seen hundreds of young men and none of them had been convincing enough to play the role his sister and he wanted to put on their chosen one's shoulders.

Alec was distracted when, from the corner of his eye, he caught someone approaching him, before a small voice called him by his name. His full name.

Head snapping up in a second, Alec's eyes fell upon a man, younger than him by a few years maybe, who looked anxious as he stared at him. He took in the gorgeous face, the delicate fingers wrapped nervously around a beer, the beanie peeking out of the pocket of the man's thick coat, before Alec's brain processed the details of his face and he looked up again, his eyes widening as he was hit by sudden realisation. Holy fuck.

"So you've met Jace, uh?" he said with a joyous chuckle - bless Jace, one million times: he'd just saved Izzy's life as well as his own. "I am Alexander, yes. And who are you?"

"Magnus," the young man said, this time a bit less awkwardly, as if Alec asking a question he could actually answer was a relief. "Jace said you might be able to help me out."

Ah! Of course. Jace had probably taken one look at that man and thought Alec would be glad to meet him - in the end, if Magnus agreed to join them, he was certainly the one who would help Alec and Izzy the most, rather than the other way around... He guessed that depended on what Magnus hoped Alec would be able to do for him.

He gestured at the young man to sit down and he couldn't help rolling his eyes at Magnus' obvious wariness. What had Jace told him? Magnus looked as if he expected to be eaten alive and granted, Alec knew he hadn't the best reputation around town but still... He wasn't known to hurt innocent people. Was he?

"Jace says a lot of things," Alec finally told the young man with a smirk. "Maybe he's right though, who knows? What are you looking for? Why did you come to me, Magnus?"

He observed the man in front of him with growing curiosity as he struggled to find his words, looking both uncomfortable as hell and hesitant, as if he felt like he was putting his head in the lion's mouth by explaining his story to Alec in the first place. However, he seemed to make up his mind when he took a deep breath and unconsciously sat more upright on his seat.

"I want to go to Edom," he revealed, which had Alec breaking in an impossibly wide grin that apparently terrified Magnus a little bit.

"Fantastic," he said, trying to turn his bright smile into a dimmer, less excited curl of lips, because Magnus running away from him in fright would really be counterproductive at this point and Jace would kill him for ruining his efforts. "I'm headed there myself, so I'm sure we'll manage to arrange something..."

"O... Okay," Magnus stammered, his eyes wide, looking both relieved that Alec deemed this enterprise possible and hesitant still, not daring to believe that it could be so easy to make a deal with Alec. "Uh, Jace told me you wouldn't do it for free but I don't..."

"Alec!" an overjoyed voice suddenly exclaimed, interrupting the younger man and making them both turn their heads. "You'll never guess what happened!"

Alec looked at his sister as she plopped down next to him with way too much excitement, her long hair cascading down her back and tickling his face when she leaned in to grab his glass and then made a face when she realised it was already empty.

"I found the perfect candidate!" she told Alec, "If you agree to meet him, I'm pretty sure we can pack his bags and leave tonight!"

"I don't think so, Izzy," Alec answered with a smile, eager to show her his own catch, that she had not even noticed in her enthusiasm, "Unless he's better than Magnus?"

He looked at the young man who was staring back in confusion and disbelief, probably wondering what drug the siblings were on, and Izzy followed her brother's gaze with a frown, until her face cleared with understanding and awe.

"Yes, yes, yes!" she immediately exclaimed, "Forget I said anything. Hi, Magnus, I'm Isabelle."

"My sister," Alec added.

She stretched her hand out and Magnus slowly shook it with a weird expression on his face, an odd mix between dread and faintly amused surprise at Izzy's behaviour and words, not that she took offense of it. Alec couldn't blame him, for the young man seemed to have been thrown in an endless loop of small shocks since he'd walked up to him. He had looked nervous at first, then taken aback, mesmerised, uncomfortable, determined and hesitant, all of that in the span of ten minutes tops, and now Izzy's arrival was the last straw. Magnus was clearly out of his depth and he was most likely aware that Alec knew as much too.

"Look," he said, glancing from one sibling to the other, before he set his eyes on Alec, "I was told you could get me to Edom. I know there is a price to pay so why don't we get down to business?"

"You want to go to Edom?" Isabelle repeated, before she laughed, "Fantastic!"

"So I've heard, yeah," Magnus mumbled, staring pointedly at Alec, until he blinked and looked away. "Even if I still don't understand why it sounds so fantastic to you..."

"Why Edom, though?" Izzy asked, ignoring the second part of Magnus' words for reasons only Alec was privy to, "Idris' blockade hasn't propelled Edom to the top five of the most popular vacation destinations."

"It's a long story," Magnus tried to deflect, which didn't go unnoticed.

"We have time," Izzy said with a smirk.

"No, we don't," Alec reminded her, casting a dark look his sister's way.

She was perfectly aware of their situation and the fact that they couldn't waste their time on Magnus' story, she even knew why. Alec would easily admit that he was as curious as her to know a bit more about the young man but they simply couldn't afford to speak for hours about the events of his life that had led him right there, in front of them, as if guided by fate. There would be time for that later, maybe, once they'd hit the road.

However, Magnus didn't pay attention to his comment and chose to answer Isabelle instead, to Alec's great frustration.

"I feel like I belong in Edom," Magnus softly explained, playing with a ring on his finger. "I don't know why, because my memories are a bit... fuzzy. I mean, I don't remember... Well, anything before I was six. My instincts are telling me I might get answers in Edom though, so I want to try and find myself there, maybe even my family."

Alec glanced at his sister and saw the same perceptive look in her eyes that one would probably find in his own gaze: they both realised that Magnus was picking his words with circumspection, careful not to say too much, because he didn't quite trust them. Again, Alec couldn't blame him: they didn't know each other and after all, neither Izzy nor he had told him anything about themselves.

"I tried the legal way," Magnus added with a bitter laugh, "and it got me nowhere. So... Here I am, I guess."

He grew quiet then, looking at the siblings with hope he was trying to conceal as much as he could, for fear of disappointment. Strangely, the thought of seeing Magnus' face fall with the prospect of failure didn't sit well with him. He gave Alec the vibe of someone who had been through much, too much for a man so young, and he probably deserved some good thing coming his way. Alec knew the feeling all too well.

"Izzy and I can get you to Edom," he finally told the young man, whose expression turned shocked, then overjoyed.

He could relate: since the beginning of their discussion, it was the first time Alec confirmed that Izzy and he could actually help him.

"Really?" Magnus asked, his eyes shining, "Even if the border's closed and all that mess between Idris and Edom?"

"Yes," Alec answered, bringing his hand up to his neck, tugging a the collar of his turtleneck only slightly, fighting the urge to scratch at his tattoo like every time someone mentioned how Idris and Edom were giving the cold shoulder to one another. "I told you, I'm headed there myself, along with Izzy. We will help you."

"But ?" Magnus added, eyes narrowing. "There's a catch, right? This can't be so easy, or everyone would be asking you. What do you want in exchange?"

"He's smart," Isabelle commented, "Can we keep him, Alec?"

"Izzy..." her brother grumbled and briefly rolled his eyes, before he looked at the other man and nibbled on his lower lip, suddenly feeling as hesitant as Magnus had seemed earlier.

That was it. Either the young man would stay or he would think they were out of their minds and leave. He wouldn't be wrong but... he hoped for the former result.

"The trip is planned for three people," Alec explained, "for Izzy and me, of course... As well as the lost son of King Asmodeus. It might be you."

"I'm sorry?" Magnus asked in a breath, deadpan, too surprised to react in any other way. "What do you mean, it might be me?"

He hadn't run away yet. Alec chose to consider it as half a victory.

"Think about it," Izzy told him gently, "You lost your memories, you don't know who you are..."

"Geez, thanks for the reminder," Magnus mumbled, eyes cast down.

"Sorry," Isabelle apologised half-heartedly, which had Alec scandalised, although he knew he wouldn't have been much more tactful than her, had he been the one to speak. "Listen, you're approximately as old as the Crown Prince should be. You even look like him! Or at least, like what he should look like these days..."

"Is that why you two stared at me in that weird way?" Magnus wondered.

"Strictly professional," Alec assured him, although he knew he was lying.

He was not ready to admit that he'd stared at the young man with an interest that was all personal, before it had hit him that Magnus could very well pass as an older version of the lost prince, whose picture had been printed all over the papers front pages when the tragedy happened. If he searched for the picture in his mess of files to make a quick comparison, Alec knew he would find a few of these press clippings quite easily.

"You want to go to Edom," Izzy concluded. "Here's our price: we take you with us, we teach you what the Crown Prince should know, you attend a meeting with Asmodeus and we're good. This is your chance at knowing who you really are, Magnus."

Her brother didn't really like the silence that followed as the young man stared at them, his eyes wide and unblinking. Alec's eyelids shut in defeat and he sighed, knowing they had lost Magnus right there and then with these last few sentences. No way he would agree to do it. Izzy and he both knew how crazy that whole plan sounded.

"You're... insane!" Magnus eventually blurted out, pretty much voicing Alec's thoughts, "I don't even... I don't know! I can't be him!"

"Why not?" Alec shot back, latching onto the faint hope that Magnus had given him: he didn't think he could be Asmodeus' son but he hadn't actually said anything about the deal itself. "It's not impossible. Nobody knows what happened all these years ago... You could be that child. Hell, maybe you actually _are_. You only have to find out, Magnus."

A new silence settled over their table but this time, Alec didn't feel as close to failure as before. Glancing at Izzy, he saw her smile at him and he squeezed her hand, trying to feel as confident as she did: she already believed they had won... Magnus was still silent though, lost in his thoughts, but neither of them attempted to make him share his decision before he was fully ready to. Interrupting his reflection wouldn't be the wisest idea...

"What if I..." Magnus started then, looking sad and lost, a sight that filled Alec's heart with unexpected pain at such expressiveness and vulnerability, "What if it turns out that I'm not him? If Asmodeus doesn't recognise me?"

"Asmodeus wants his son back," Alec told him gently, "and you want to find your family. He won't blame you for reaching out and trying to belong. He'll understand."

Magnus nodded, slowly, still processing everything that had been said to him as he traced the edge of his glass with his index. Alec's grasp on Izzy's hand tightened in expectation, for he could almost see the cogs turning in Magnus' head, until the young man looked up.

"I'm in," he said, oblivious to the way Alec's tense shoulders suddenly unwound. "I'm probably as insane as you, but this is my only chance, so... When do we leave?"

Alec nearly beamed at the young man in relief and happiness, and he let Isabelle tell him about the upcoming parts of the plan - that were basic: first, go to Magnus' place to pack what he needed and second, hit the road. Alec gathered his files while they discussed details such as Magnus' address, barely able to believe their luck. They were so close. After two years of scouting and ending up disappointed, time after time, Izzy and he had finally found the perfect man. Or Jace had, whatever.

Allowing a smile to settle on his face, Alec stood up. He watched with raised brows as Magnus looked at him, then flushed as he realised that there was a gun slipped in his thigh holster. He didn't comment on it as the older man put his long coat on but instead, he stuck to Izzy's side, as if he was scared to get too close to Alec and his gun. He snorted. If Magnus only knew how many weapons Isabelle was carrying, concealed, on herself, he would be jumping in Alec's arms to never approach Izzy again.

"Let's go," Izzy suggested with a grin, her excitement at the prospect of finally getting to do what they had worked so hard to accomplish palpable. "Follow me."

She took the lead of their little group, an overeager bounce to her steps as she slipped through the crowd - when people weren't moving out of the way themselves at the sight of her. Alec's hand shot up to steady Magnus when someone accidentally bumped into him and he turned to him with eyes so narrowed and dark that the poor guy muttered a fearful apology and looked at his feet while he scurried away.

"Glare any harder and you might actually kill him," Magnus chuckled, although the way his eyes travelled down to Alec's gun held a serious question: had he already killed someone with it?

Alec shrugged, then realised that he was still holding onto Magnus' shoulder. He pushed him forward, gently, before letting go... Although he followed up close behind, not too keen on having anyone collide into him again. Magnus had agreed to help Izzy and him - even though the young man didn't know how helpful he would be to them exactly - so Alec intended on watching over him with his eyes wide open. For professional reasons. Of course.

  


  


Alec tried not to appear too disappointed as he looked around Magnus' little and cold apartment, stuck between two bigger and more modern buildings that only highlighted how tiny and old his own was. There was a narrow kitchen and a slightly bigger room that Magnus apparently used as a living-room, although it was clear, judging by the folded blanket and the pillow above it, that the couch was also his bed. The young man had obviously brought his own touch to the place though, through pictures here and there, a few books that looked far too damaged for Magnus to be their first owner, or lovely plants that sadly didn't do much to brighten the grim apartment.

However, Alec wasn't disappointed because he had expected better - honestly, he had come in with zero expectation regarding Magnus' living arrangements. He just felt a bit sad from this glance into the young man's empty life. In some way, it was like looking in a mirror: Alec and Izzy knew everything about the bare, basic life too. Magnus had been surprised when he'd asked if they had to go to their place as well so the siblings could pack a bag or two, and Izzy had explained that their bags were ready since virtually forever, safely located in the trunk of Alec's car.

"Rental," he had supplied when Magnus' eyes had narrowed with the suspicion of thievery.

The guy didn't trust him, fine, he got it. Not good enough a reason to be unpleasant with him, though...

"Do you think we can do this?" Izzy softly asked him while Magnus packed some clothes in the bathroom. "This feels... unreal."

"We spent enough time getting ready," Alec told her, briefly hugging her to place a kiss on her forehead. "If anyone can do this, it's us Lightwoods."

"Right," Izzy grumbled, "Not that dad..."

"Dad isn't us," he said before she could go any further with that idea.

Their father had done the best he could do in that situation, Alec was certain of it, and even though the following years hadn't been easy, he wouldn't blame him for his failure. It happened, and their family had learned to live with that burden - but not to accept it.

"It's our only chance anyway," Alec added, still on a quiet tone, glancing at the bathroom to make sure that Magnus wasn't coming back yet. "Asmodeus doubled the reward, Izzy, so I don't think he has much time left anymore..."

The trail of Alec's thoughts and words was brutally interrupted when a ferocious beast came running at him from the bathroom and rubbed itself against both of his shoes. The dangerous predator meowed while Izzy cooed at it and Alec stood there, gaping at the cat that had just adopted his legs.

"What is this?" he asked, pointing at the tiny ball of fur and looking at Magnus when he came out of the room as well, a duffel bag slung on his shoulder.

"My cat," Magnus said with a soft smile, "His name's Chairman Meow."

"He's not coming with us, is he?" Alec enquired, taking a step back so the cat would stop playing with his shoelaces.

"I can't leave him here while I'm gone!" Magnus protested, "Who will feed him?"

"Don't you have a friend who could..."

"No, I don't have friends," Magnus snapped before he could finish, crossing his arms against his chest defensively, daring the siblings to comment on that fact.

"I'm allergic to cats," Alec tried, because he really didn't want to travel with that cat, no matter how adorable.

"No you're not," Izzy scoffed, before she picked up Chairman Meow and pressed him against her chest, "Come on, little guy, let's get you settled in the car..."

She left after that, abandoning her brother with Magnus, who was still glaring at Alec. Great. He had certainly missed a few classes of _How to make a good first impression 101_. And he was literally the worst, because he found Magnus' angry face awfully attractive. Yep, the worst.

Sighing, Alec gestured toward Magnus' duffel bag with a tentative smile, a metaphorical as well as literal hand held out for the young man to grab, to take at least one step into the right direction before the situation could get worse.

"I can carry my own bag," Magnus told him coldly, before he walked away from him and through the door.

Right. Frustrated, with him or with himself, he didn't know, Alec followed him outside so that Magnus could lock his apartment, then down the stairs and to their black car, where Izzy was already sitting, riding shotgun. Brushing the fresh snow off the handle, he opened the trunk for the young man, who carefully put his bag next to his and Isabelle's. Magnus was about to get inside the vehicle when Alec held him back, his fingers closing around his wrist before he could open the back door, and the younger man turned around with a glare, probably getting ready to fight him a bit more.

"I didn't want to take Chairman Meow with us because this won't be the safest of travels," Alec explained as calmly as he could manage to. "I won't be held responsible if anything happens to him."

"Oh, because you are worried, now?" Magnus snorted. "Don't be, Alexander. I can fucking take care of myself, or my cat."

With that, Magnus broke free of Alec's grasp, not that he had held on tight anyway, then he climbed inside the car to sit behind Izzy - certainly not behind the driver seat - and took Chairman Meow on his knees, nervous fingers threading through his fur. Alec couldn't believe the change between the Magnus from one hour earlier, nervous and intimidated at the thought of discussing his way out of Idris with him, and this Magnus, fierce and protective of his pet. Was it Alec? Was he really that infuriating?

Scowling, he took his own place in the car and didn't miss the amused glance Izzy shot him as he turned the key into the ignition. Of course she would be delighted at seeing her brother and their charge get on _oh-so well_.

Alec stayed quiet while Izzy started talking with Magnus, who answered her with a joyous lilt to his voice that had been completely inexistent in his conversation, if you could call it that way, with Alec. He tried to focus on the road, heading for the closest train station, his eyebrows stuck in a frown.

The way Magnus had called him _Alexander_ kept echoing in his mind, though.

  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Good job boys, this is such a good start, haha!  
> Thank you for reading :) Don't forget to comment, it would mean a lot and be really helpful. Until next time!


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone! Thank you so much for your supportive comments on the last chapter, they all mean so much to me, thank you <3

  


Alec had been planning this journey to Edom for two whole years, using his and Izzy's acquaintances to develop a network of people they could trust, people they could trust _if_ they paid them well enough, and people they should only call if in dire need of help. With the efforts this had demanded, one could have believed that the preparation was the worst part of it and that the travel itself would be a piece of cake.

Far from it.

Izzy and he had known that, of course. They had never expected to simply get in a car, drive to the border and cross it to Edom after flashing a bright smile to the soldiers who were stationed there. Needless to say, they would not have gotten far with such a bad plan.

Early on, Izzy had pointed out that driving directly and restlessly toward the border would alert the authorities: over the past fifteen years, cameras and radars had been installed on the roads that led to the border checkpoints to control the number of vehicles headed that way, compared to the amounts of authorisations given by the administration. Alec didn't really care about whether they had done this out of pettiness, anchored rivalry with Edom or political reasons, because all three had the same result: the car he had rented could only get them so far.

Instead of going on a road trip in a van, filled with laughter and self-discovery while listening to music, they would catch the first train heading South, then rent another car for a few days, and cross the border in that place Alec had been able to spot where controls weren't as frequent as they were elsewhere. If they made it that far without any trouble, he would deem them very lucky already.

Travelling all the way to Asmodeus' palace and obtaining a meeting with him, while making sure that Magnus didn't change his mind and didn't freak out, would be a whole other ordeal. The young man was currently the hardest element to handle, although Izzy didn't share his opinion. Then again, _they_ actually spoke to each other. Maybe she didn't notice the same things as he did... The problem number one was Magnus' absolute gorgeousness. Alec was certain that Jace had been laughing the whole time he suggested that they met at the Hunter's moon to the young man, because of course his friend would know that Magnus was his type.

Problem number two? Not only was Magnus one of the most handsome men Alec had ever had the pleasure to set his eyes on, he was also a real pain in the ass. Even after only a few hours in his company, Alec was sure of it. And Izzy called _him_ grumpy!

Alec subtly glanced at Magnus, sitting next to Isabelle. They were at the train station, glad to only have a few more minutes of waiting to do, after being there for half a night already. Of course Magnus had whined about being cold - Izzy had too, not that her complaints bothered him as much. To be fair, the younger man's coat had seen better days so Alec could understand that he wasn't able to stand the freezing temperatures of a winter night in Idris as well as Izzy, armed with a woollen scarf and thick, warm gloves.

Still, when Alec had offered him the extra scarf he had in his bag, Magnus had scoffed and hugged Chairman Meow a bit closer to him. What was Alec supposed to do now?! Just because he disagreed about bringing the cat with them, Magnus hated his ass?

"I still think we should have stayed at my place instead of waiting here," Magnus mumbled, "We would have been warmer."

"True but don't worry, the train's almost there," Isabelle answered softly, managing the delicate mission of phrasing her agreement in a way to sound compassionate without putting the blame on Alec, who had insisted about leaving the small apartment.

_Not to be a dick_ , he felt compelled to say, although he remained silent. Magnus was right of course, the wait would have been way more comfortable if they'd stayed at his place, no matter how bare it was and how cold it had felt during the brief time they'd spent there.

However, Magnus didn't know why it was so important to move, constantly, with different patterns: one night sleeping in the car, two in a motel, one driving... How could he imagine? Neither Izzy nor he had explained and perhaps it was better this way, if they wanted to keep him by their side and not witness him fleeing into the wild. The Lightwoods had enemies. Staying somewhere, even shortly, and settling down comfortably, to the point of potentially falling asleep without anyone keeping watch, could have terrible consequences.

Sitting on the benches of the train station though, Magnus had fallen asleep with his cat snuggled against his chest while Izzy told Alec she was okay being on first shift guard duty. He'd ended up joining Magnus in a fitful sleep, knowing that his sister was keeping an eye on them, and his eyelids had opened from time to time to see Chairman Meow's pupils glowing in the darkness of the night, until his sister had shaken him awake for his own shift, apologising with sandwiches she'd bought at the deli in the station. The food didn't taste like crap, even though that wasn't the best sandwich of his life, and he'd left the second one next to Magnus so he would find it once he'd come to.

He'd found it and thanked Isabelle, not him. Not that Alec was bitter about that: after all, she _had_ bought them herself.

"The train's coming," he said when he caught sight of the train lights in the distance as it slowed down to enter the station, the snow on the ground billowing with the gush of air caused by the movement.

The three of them stood up, a bit stiffly, and Alec steered clear of Magnus' bag since he'd made it clear before that he didn't need his help. Still, when he saw him struggle to hold Chairman Meow as well as his bag, he couldn't refrain from taking a few steps forward, intent on helping him out.

"Give me your cat," he suggested, making grabby hands toward Magnus' pet.

"No," came the firm answer, "he stays with me."

"Then put him in your bag," Alec said, "since we don't have a proper cat travel bag..."

"I'm not trapping Chairman Meow in my bag!" Magnus exclaimed, scandalised, "What do you take me for, a barbarian?!"

Alec gaped in surprise. Were they doomed to misunderstand each other and make the other angry every time they talked? He didn't have the time to explain that of course the bag would stay half open so that the cat could breathe and be comfortable, two elements that he had in fact considered before making that suggestion, because Izzy laughed behind them.

"Remind me to buy popcorn the next time I walk into a store," she snorted.

Magnus shrugged, aiming for disinterest even though his frown said something else, and he pointedly ignored the siblings as the train stopped and the doors opened.

"You think this is funny?" Alec grumbled in his sister's ear while Magnus got in.

"I mostly think you two have some extreme sexual tension going on," Izzy answered with another bark of laughter. "Please, make sure I'm not there when you finally hook up."

"What the hell, Izzy?!" her brother spluttered, eyes wide as he looked at her in shock, "That's bullshit! It's never going to happen! Ever!"

"You didn't say you weren't interested," she pointed out with a smirk, before she grabbed her bag and got on the train.

Utter bullshit, Alec thought as he followed her. Stupid. Ridiculous. Preposterous. He didn't... lust after Magnus. Who would? Sure, he was handsome but he also was a little shit who didn't appreciate the efforts Alec was making to bring him to the other side of the border, he was a man with a temper and expressive eyes, a nice but shy smile when he wasn't glaring at him, and hands that Alec would love to feel in his hair rather than seeing them run through Chairman Meow's fur. Fuck. He was lusting after Magnus.

Shaking his head, banishing Izzy's knowing grin from his mind, Alec climbed into the train, grumbling through gritted teeth as he treaded into his sister's footsteps, until he saw where Magnus intended to sit for the duration of the ride - and it wouldn't do.

"Wait," he said before the young man could put his bag on the rack above the seats. "Not here. There."

He pointed at four seats a bit further away, which were quite similar to the ones Magnus had chosen, save for an important detail. When he saw the younger man frown and open his mouth to argue, Alec decided to explain the reason behind his decision before Magnus could get mad at him again.

"These seats are right next to the emergency exit so it's safer to sit there," he said, pointing at the little red hammer behind its glass cage, meant to break the window. "Now move."

"Oh my God, you're so bossy," Magnus complained, even though he obeyed. "I can't believe it."

Alec choked on his spit at that comment.

"Bossy?!" he squeaked, affronted. "Bossy?! I'm keeping you alive!"

"Right," Magnus drawled, "because this train could try to eat me?"

"Behave, children," Izzy chided them both, pushing them in different directions so they sat opposite each other instead of side by side, which would have inevitably resulted in the murder of one of them by the other. "Don't mind my brother, Magnus, he's just obsessively protective."

"You know why, Isabelle," Alec snapped, regretting it as soon as he saw his sister wince.

Magnus glared at him, apparently catching on Izzy's hurt, but Alec refused to apologise. It was Magnus' fault anyway, he was getting on his nerves!

"Don't worry," Isabelle said softly, patting Magnus' hand, "Alec is an ass when he's nervous, that's all."

"Nervous?" both men repeated at the same time, Magnus in curiosity, Alec in outrage.

They glanced at each other before abruptly looking away, crossing their arms over their chests in twin moves that had Isabelle chuckle. Wrapping himself in the shreds of his offended dignity, Alec turned toward the window to watch the scenery outside - except that it was four o'clock in a winter morning and he couldn't see anything beside his reflection, a pale face under the artificial lighting of the train.

"I think I'm going to nap some more," Magnus mumbled, yawning and leaning his head back on his seat.

"Please do," Alec groaned, glaring at the enthralling throat Magnus had displayed.

Fuck.

"Fine," Magnus shot back with yet another glare, unwilling to let the older man have the last word.

Alec heaved a sigh and looked around as a few more passengers boarded the train. Early morning trains usually weren't packed so he wasn't surprised to count only four people other than them in their carriage.

"So, what's the plan?" Magnus asked as the train finally moved forward, the engines filling the carriage with a rhythmic noise.

"I thought you wanted to sleep?" Alec said with a smirk.

"You're distracting me," Magnus answered in a breath.

To Alec's surprise, the younger man blushed and looked away, as if he had admitted something that he would rather have kept to himself. As he was too taken aback to speak and blinked in incomprehension, Izzy was the one to answer Magnus' question.

"This train goes Southward to Alicante," she explained, "but we will get off before we reach the city. We have to lay low if we don't want to be noticed and stopped before we get to the border."

"So how do we get there?" Magnus asked, his elbows on his knees as he leaned forward with interest.

"With a car, then we'll probably walk to cross the border in a discreet place, far from the main checkpoints. Then we'll rent another car or maybe..."

Alec's attention strayed away from what his sister was saying when a man entered their carriage. He wouldn't have heeded him any longer if the man hadn't seemed suspicious, glancing at the passengers if he was searching for someone... That, and he looked awfully familiar. Alec knew his face was scrunching up as he focused, as he thought about where he could have possibly met that man, until realisation dawned on him.

Alarmed but trying not to let it show, he stood up and Izzy stopped talking at his sudden move, looking up with curious eyes.

"Is everything okay?" she asked.

"I'm not sure," Alec whispered, "Magnus, come here."

"See?" the young man grumbled even as he got on his feet and handed Chairman Meow to Isabelle, "That's why I say you're bossy! You can't even... Uh?"

He let out a small squeak when Alec quickly pulled him into a hug, angling their bodies so that Magnus could see the man clearly, while still being shielded by Alec's taller frame.

"What are you doing?" Magnus asked in a whisper that betrayed his shock. "A... Alexander?"

"See that man walking in our direction?" Alec asked, trying to ignore the way Magnus kept calling him by his full name. "Does he look familiar to you?"

The younger man was silent for a while and Alec nosed along his neck, playing the role of what could have passed as a lover reuniting with his better half to the other passengers. He felt Magnus shiver.

"Yeah," the latter let out a shaky breath that Alec couldn't analyse: was it fear or something else, far more dangerous to examine? "I saw him at the Hunters' moon yesterday. He bumped into me..."

"Exactly," Alec answered, glad that he wasn't imagining problems where there was no reason to do so, "I'm not sure this was just an accident, though. Don't move."

This time, Magnus didn't accuse him of being bossy anymore but he looked at him with wide eyes as Alec slowly caressed Magnus' side until he could put his hand in the pocket of the young man's coat. There, he found the plastic of the sandwich Izzy had bought for him and underneath that... A tiny, easy-to-miss bug. Alec took it out and showed it to his sister.

"We're being followed," she said with a concerned frown, grabbing the bug and burying it between her seat and Magnus'. "Plan B, we should get off at the next station."

"Agreed," Alec answered, letting go of Magnus to take his bag and hand it to him. "Right now, we switch carriages. I want to see what he'll do."

"Alec," Izzy groaned in warning.

"I just want to see," he repeated, "I promise."

His sister didn't look convinced but she still took their own bags after giving Chairman Meow back to Magnus, and she gestured at their companion to follow her as she headed for the next carriage, in the opposite direction from the man who was clearly looking for them - and whose gaze had zeroed in on Alec, still standing in the middle of the way as rearguard.

"What is he going to do?" he heard Magnus whisper as he left with Isabelle.

"Hopefully, just see," Izzy answered on a tone that clearly betrayed what she was thinking, that Alec would never allow this threat to follow them any further. "In reality, I think he'll knock him out."

A soft gasp answered her and Alec finally turned around, calmly, and followed his sister and Magnus at a distance. He could hear the sound of footsteps behind him as he went, meaning that as he thought, the man was following them. Alec subtly glanced around, checking for anything he could use as a weapon - he had already ruled out his gun, concealed underneath his long coat: he was not going to shoot in a moving train and risk hurting some innocent person in the process.

Magnus and Izzy had already entered the other carriage when Alec had an idea. He was standing in-between, right in front of the toilets, and the man wasn't that far behind. Controlling his every gesture with a calmness that he was far from feeling in his body, his heart pumping faster in anticipation of the fight, Alec opened the door to the loo and slipped inside. His breathing quickened as he listened to the noises in the gangway, slowly starting to close the door, holding tight onto the handle... Until the man was only a few steps away.

Alec brutally opened the door, putting all of his strength into that move, and he felt the impact of the panel against the man's face through his arm. He let go and rushed out of the toilets, hands balled into fists and ready to punch, aiming on taking advantage of the man's dizziness. He wasn't completely stunned yet though, already back on his feet and almost perfectly balanced, betraying a long training. This wasn't an amateur.

Alec blocked a blow to his head and answered with a sharp kick to the knee that his opponent managed to dodge by jumping on him, hands shooting up to his throat. He ducked at the last second and threw the man to the ground, rolling him across his back and... The asshole stood up again, snatching a knife from his belt.

Alec stepped back in a defensive stance when the other ran toward him. He grabbed the man's wrist, pressing his thumb straight against the sinews of his forearm, desperately trying to hurt him enough for him to drop the knife - but he didn't see a knee coming up to catch him in the stomach. Alec coughed as he fell backward and the next second, the man was already on him, his knife coming down too quickly.

"Fuck!" he shouted as the blade slashed across his arm, sharp pain spreading, when he raised his fist and punched his opponent in the throat before the knife could reach his face.

Alec rolled to the side and hoisted himself up on his good arm to stand, but the man in front of him did the same. At least he had let go of the knife... Also, he didn't look too good but then again, Alec probably didn't either. He considered for a few seconds using his gun to settle this once and for all, even without killing the other man, but he didn't have the time to come to a decision as he was attacked once more.

Of course the guy came straight at his already injured arm and Alec had no other choice than fend him off using his shoulder, pushing him as hard as he could and shoving him into the door of the toilet once more.

This time, he heard a satisfying grunt of pain - that he couldn't enjoy for long though, because he was pushed back in an instant and slammed into the opposite wall. His sight turned blurry with the shock and when he shook his head to get rid of the dizziness, it was only to see his opponent striding in his direction.

He never made it, though.

Suddenly, Izzy was there, jumping with a furious shout on the man and bringing him down with that trick only she knew the secret of, her legs wrapped around his neck and squeezing tight. He kicked and thrashed, tried to break free, but Izzy held on, panting, until he stopped squirming and let out a gurgle from the lack of oxygen.

"I think that's enough," Alec rasped, allowing himself to slide down the wall and take a deep, calming breath.

"Good," Izzy said, unlocking her legs and pushing the man's body to the side before standing up to check his pulse. "He'll be out for a while."

"Yeah, good," Alec repeated, eyes closed. "We should leave him inside the toilet, he'll wake up eventually. Give me just a minute. Where's Magnus?"

"I'm right here," a small voice answered.

Alec lifted one eyelid, immediately catching sight of the young man, Chairman Meow protectively held in his arms while he looked with wide eyes at the mess he and the other had made. Magnus seemed a bit pale, too, and he blanched ever more when Alec finally stood up and revealed the ripped sleeves of his coat and sweater and, beneath it, his bleeding arm.

"You're hurt!" he exclaimed.

"A little," Alec admitted in a grunt, unwilling to make Magnus worry but unable to lie either. "It's okay."

Shaking her head, Isabelle sidestepped Magnus and dug into one of the bags behind him, from which she grabbed a grey t-shirt.

"Here, give me your arm," Izzy enjoined him.

"No," Alec protested, clutching his arm to his chest, "I like that t-shirt!"

"You have plenty of other grey t-shirts, that's like ninety per cent of your wardrobe" she argued, rightly so, "and I like that arm. Now gimme."

Sighing, Alec allowed her to hold his forearm and she carefully inspected the gash before she pressed the folded t-shirt against the slashes to stop the bleeding and then, she used it as a makeshift bandage.

"It's not that deep," she said while she worked, "We'll take care of that properly later."

"Yes," he agreed, "And thank you. What would I do without you?"

"I don't even want to know," she answered with a snort.

Alec hugged her with his good arm, before he noticed that Magnus was still looking at him with the same expression of bewilderment. Understandable, he thought. The young man had probably never been involved in such business before and now... Well, trust Izzy and Alec to get into a brutal fight on their first day of travelling. Speaking of which, they really needed to discuss what had just happened and put their heads together to think about who could possibly track them and send people after them like this. This kind of situation upset all their projects...

"So," Izzy said, reading his mind like she often did, "change of plan confirmed?"

"Yeah," Alec answered with a nod. "We get off at the next station."

"Then car?" she guessed.

He nodded again, before he jerked his head toward the unconscious man.

"We don't have time to wait until he wakes up to interrogate him, so let's put him in the toilet. Give me a hand..."

Alec was about to grab the man's arms while Izzy took his legs, but Magnus' shy hand on his shoulder made him stop. He turned his head, surprised, even more so when his charge gently pushed him to the side and handed him Chairman Meow, arranging the cat's position so he would stay against Alec's chest even if he only used one arm to support him.

"You're hurt," Magnus explained softly, "Let me take care of this for you."

Alec couldn't even think of a reaction, what with his armful of cat and the pain in his forearm - in his whole body, actually. So he watched, dumbfounded, as Magnus and Izzy joined forces to hide the man who was responsible for Alec's bad shape and closed the door behind him. Anyone glancing in the gangway could never have guessed what had just happened, especially not after Magnus picked up the discarded knife and handed it to Isabelle with a disgusted and wary frown.

As they sat together in another carriage, with Chairman Meow pawing at his pants and purring, Alec couldn't take his eyes off of the young man who had gone from a shy guy to a little shit and now, to a caring angel, all of that in less than twenty-four hours. Magnus was probably the strangest, most surprising man Alec had ever met and he realised that he was looking forward to find out more about him, now that they seemed to be getting along...

"Do you really only own grey t-shirts?" Magnus then asked out of the blue, as if the thought had been nagging him ever since Izzy had mentioned it. "That's sad."

Never mind. He was still a little shit.

  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> These boys are hopeless. Thank you for reading!


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hiii! Here we go again, for the aftermath of the train attack... Will our boys eventually get along? :)

  


Magnus carefully got down the two narrow steps between the train and the platform, balancing his duffle bag on his shoulder and Chairman Meow in his arms. Alec hadn't dared to suggest placing his cat in his bag again, although judging by the look he'd given him, he had been about to. However, Magnus' reaction the first time around had apparently dissuaded him to try again.

He knew that he had been a bit harsh but... He couldn't help it. Alexander was as infuriating as he was gorgeous and he made him feel... nervous. Nervous with what lay ahead of them, their travel and all these things he would have to learn and remember, not to mention what had just come down in the train, which would hopefully not happen again. That wasn't the end if it, though... He was also nervous with the way Alec's hazel eyes searched his soul, nervous with the irresistible need to be close to him.

The older man radiated confidence and protectiveness, which had Magnus torn between the urge to stay away, because he could take care of himself, thank you very much, and the need to let himself be taken care of, at least once in his life.

He had always looked after himself, by necessity: no one, in the orphanage, would have raised a finger to help him - not when he was cold, not when he cried in his own little corner because the other kids were mean to him, never.

Alec protecting him felt new, upsetting his habits and awakening an odd fear: what if, when it was all over, he didn't know how to fend for himself anymore, after trusting a stranger to do it for him?

So he was putting his walls up, higher than before even, because he hated feeling vulnerable and he'd already told the siblings too much, opened a part of himself that he didn't want other people to see: his insecurities regarding his identity, his past, all of these belonged to him and he didn't like to share. He already had though, before they even left the Hunter's moon together. Not that he'd had a choice...

Magnus was aware of being especially unfair to Alec. Isabelle was great, they'd talked a bit in the car and at the station, while they waited for the train, but Alec and he hadn't. Or, to be more accurate and honest, Magnus had either shut down or snapped at every single one of Alec's attempts, so...

He didn't know what it was about the older man that made him react that way and that confusion made him angry - at himself... Mostly. A bit at Alec too, because he had to be partly responsible for Magnus' dislike, right? Well, maybe _dislike_ was too strong a word. It wasn't that he didn't _like_ him per se, Alec was just... Something else. Something he couldn't figure out.

At least their disagreement on whether or not they should bring Chairman Meow on the road with them had given him a concrete reason to be mad and keep his distances... Except that Alec had explained that he didn't want anything bad to happen to his cat and Magnus had hated him for that comment, because he sounded so much softer then, worried even, and where did that leave him in terms of _concrete reasons_?

"Are you alright?" Alec suddenly asked while they went through the station, making him jump in fright.

"Y... Yeah, " Magnus stuttered, realising that he'd been lost in his dazed thoughts, keeping his unfocused eyes on the ground, slippery with melted snow brought by passengers' shoes. "Why?"

"Because you're awfully silent," Alec answered.

He didn't mean anything by that comment. Magnus knew that and yet, he took it personally. As they left the station and stepped on the street, he snapped:

"I'm not scared."

"I didn't say you were," Alec answered calmly, lifting his eyebrows at Magnus' defensive behaviour. "I just asked if you were okay. Now that you mention being scared though, I hope I didn't frighten you back there..."

Magnus didn't immediately answer, thinking back to the train episode and the fight between Alec and that man, whom he still knew nothing about. He wanted to ask about him but he wasn't certain that either of the siblings would tell him anything... He remained silent for a while as flashes of what had happened came back to his mind. Izzy and he hadn't witnessed the whole fight - thankfully, because he felt traumatised enough already - but Magnus had seen the way Alec got slammed into the wall...

"I'm not scared of you," he eventually said, this time more gently. "I'm sorry though... I didn't think asking you to bring me to Edom would be so dangerous."

"It's not your fault," Izzy told him, even though he hadn't mentioned anything about thinking that way. "I didn't think we'd have to face that kind of situation."

"Me neither," Alec groaned as he glanced at his injured arm.

Right. That had to hurt. Izzy came to the same conclusion, because she glanced around, until she spotted a supermarket.

"You two go buy us some food and bandages," she said, although to Magnus it sounded more like a command that he would not have dared counter, not after seeing what she could do to those who upset her. "Take care of that wound before we travel on."

"Where are you going?" Alec asked in immediate worry when his sister walked away from them.

"Rent a car, if I can find one at this hour," she answered with a smile, "I'm not travelling all the way south on my two feet... Be back at the station in twenty minutes tops, we have to move!"

She took off, leaving her brother and Magnus alone, but she made sure to turn around and yell _Don't forget my popcorn!_ before disappearing around the corner of a perpendicular street. Great. Now Alec and he were alone together... Isabelle seemed to think it was funny but Magnus begged to differ: he didn't know what to do with Alec... Nor with himself in Alec's vicinity, to be honest.

"Shall we?" the latter asked, jerking his head in the direction of the supermarket before he headed that way, fresh snowflakes falling onto his dark hair.

"Is it even open yet?" Magnus wondered in a grumble, following Alec's lead nonetheless while he glanced at the huge clock at the entrance of the station. "It's barely seven in the morning!"

"If it's not," Alec started, not at all bothered by the potential closed doors, "we'll go to the back, it should be less exposed..."

"Are you suggesting what I think you're suggesting?" Magnus whispered in shock, "Breaking and entering? That's illegal!"

"I know," Alec merely said, shrugging. "Wouldn't be the first time Izzy or I break the law. Besides, are you really more worried about breaking into a supermarket than crossing the border _illegally_?"

"When you put it that way..." Magnus grumbled.

Alec let out a sharp laugh and walked a bit faster, forcing Magnus to quicken his pace as well to stay by his side. He deemed them lucky, for it turned out that the store was already open, taking advantage of the starved, zombie-like passengers the train station was swarming with even in the early morning. Magnus was glad they didn't have to break a door and steal their food.

The cashier who watched them enter stared at them with wide eyes, what with Alec still carrying Chairman Meow - who looked bored out of his mind, poor boy. The older man's face was also pale, livid almost, and the blood-soaked t-shirt still tied around his forearm was starting to look a bit too red not to draw attention to them.

Together, they hurried through the aisles of the store, collecting bandages and antiseptic, bottles of water, biscuits, a pack of ready-to-eat popcorn to humour Izzy, because Alec said she might kill him if he ignored her craving for popcorn. Assuming the other man knew his sister, Magnus didn't argue.

"Wait," Alec said right before they reached the cashier, still looking at them, "One more thing... Shouldn't we buy some food for Chairman Meow?"

Said cat perked up as he heard his name but when he realised that nothing of importance was happening - Magnus and Alec were standing still, after all - his head plopped back down on Alec's shoulder. That sight was adorable beyond words but Magnus refused to think about it any longer; it was bad already that he was melting at Alec's thoughtfulness right this instant, so he didn't really want to make it worse by cooing at his cat's apparent love for the older man. Chairman Meow usually didn't cuddle with strangers. The fact that Magnus had never had any friend to introduce Chairman Meow to was irrelevant: his cat couldn't like strangers and definitively not Alec, period.

"I packed some," he finally mumbled, glancing at his bag. "Thank you, though."

Alec nodded and they stayed quiet as they handed their items to the cashier, who took a good look at his bloody arm and didn't dare raise her eyes anymore after that. Magnus was a bit worried that she would call the cops and Alec seemed to think of the same problem, because he said, as if he was trying to make small talk:

"Do you know when the next train to Lynn City leaves?"

"Lynn City?" the cashier repeated, glancing up and then quickly casting her eyes down.

"Yeah," Alec answered, pretending that he didn't notice her awkwardness, "My friend and I want to go camping. Lynn City is a great place for that, don't you think? The lake, the forest all around..."

"I guess," the woman murmured. "Uh, there are two trains every hour, I think?"

"Great," Alec said with a charming smile, that only Magnus noticed since the cashier was still not looking at either of them. "Thank you for your help!"

She mumbled something unintelligible and pointed at her screen to show them how much money they'd spent on these errands, and Alec took out a few banknotes out of his pants pocket.

"Cash only, no credit card in situations like ours," he explained to Magnus as they walked out of the store.

"I understand," Magnus answered, wondering if he would have to remember that as well, along with all the information on Asmodeus' son and his story. "Also, you mentioned Lynn City?"

"Yes."

"Which is in the North..."

"Indeed," Alec confirmed with a smile.

"We're heading South, though..." Magnus pointed out, "So, if she calls the cops..."

"They'll look for us where we aren't," Alec finished, his shoulders shaking with silent laughter.

Magnus didn't manage to laugh with him. He was impressed, though. Not because of the ruse but rather because of the automatism. Alec hadn't thought twice before engaging the cashier in this seemingly innocent conversation that would still confuse the policemen if they ever got involved in the situation.

Alec and Izzy were a mystery. What had happened to them to make them fight like this, to know they couldn't use credit cards, to send the people after them on a wrong trail? Again, he wanted to ask. He had no idea who he was travelling with... It should have worried him more than it actually did and yet, he wasn't that concerned. Magnus didn't feel like he was on the road with dangerous criminals... Maybe he shouldn't ask at all. Who knew what he would find out? In this case, perhaps ignorance was bliss.

The two of them went back to the train station and headed for the restroom, where Alec would finally be able to clean up his wound and bandage it properly. Magnus didn't particularly enjoy the sight of blood, so he took care of feeding Chairman Meow, who looked like this was the first exciting event to happen all day... If only!

When he glanced up to check on Alec's progress, he saw that the other man had rolled the sleeve of his sweater up and had already cleaned the gash across his forearm. He looked a bit ridiculous though, one end of the bandage held between his gritted teeth while his free hand worked around his arm, trying to make a not-too-messy dressing for his wound.

"Do you need help?" he asked.

"Vo I loof life I need helf?" Alec grumbled around the bandage.

"Honestly?" Magnus snorted as he snatched it from his grasp, "Yes."

The older male groaned some more but Magnus didn't even try to make sense out of his grumbles. He was too busy focusing on doing a half decent job, attempting to make the bandage just tight enough so that Alec would still feel his arm, without bleeding on.

"Izzy usually does it for me," Alec suddenly whispered in the silent restroom, as if he couldn't stand the silence. "She wants to be a doctor when it's all over."

"I sort of hoped that you didn't know how to take care of this kind of thing because it didn't happen so often," Magnus said, his tone equally low and soft as he worked. "Why are you and your sister so set on bringing King Asmodeus his lost son anyway? I might not even be him."

When Alec didn't answer, Magnus looked up to see hesitation on the other's face. There was something there, an answer to that question, haunting these hazel eyes and wary to come out.

"Alexander?" he tried, "Why does it matter so much to you?"

"Are you done?" Alec snapped abruptly, not even trying to deflect Magnus' questions in a subtle way. "Izzy will be waiting for us."

"Yes, all done," Magnus shot back as he tied the bandage a bit more roughly than needed, feeling a sadistic satisfaction at the small wince of pain that Alec let out. "Keep your secrets. I don't care."

This time, Alec's wince was louder, as if he'd just realised that he had been an asshole to Magnus, who'd only wished to help and understand him. Sure, they didn't know each other. He still had the right to be treated kindly, though.

"Sorry," Alec said, rolling his sleeve down and scratching his neck awkwardly. "I shouldn't have..."

"No, you shouldn't have," Magnus confirmed. "Now get your stuff. _Izzy will be waiting for us_."

Fuming with anger of which he couldn't even understand the reason - it wasn't the first time in his life someone hurt him that way, for fuck's sake! - Magnus threw the pack of cat food in his bag, set Chairman Meow across his shoulders and left the restroom without waiting for Alec. He didn't even care if he followed him. He didn't need Alec to find Izzy outside. So, when he heard hurried footsteps attempting to catch up, he didn't turn around and only walked on, until he found himself outside of the station once more.

Isabelle was there already, waiting for them behind the steering-wheel with a shit-eating grin that vanished when Magnus pulled the door open, threw his bag inside the car and sat down in sullen silence.

"Are you okay?" she worried.

"Yes," he said, trying not to sound as annoyed with her as he was with her brother, as she wasn't responsible for her sibling's lack of manners. "We got your popcorn."

"This isn't what I..."

She trailed off when Alec entered the car as well and sat next to her at the front, looking as upset as Magnus probably did. Great. They made a perfect pair.

"What did you do?" Izzy asked her brother with narrowed eyes.

It made Magnus feel significantly better to know that Izzy was on his side. He expected Alec to deny having done anything to discontent him though, so he was surprised when the older man didn't pretend not to understand her meaning but groaned:

"None of your business."

"So you did do something," Izzy concluded with a fed-up roll of her eyes. "Alec..."

"This car isn't rental," he said, poking at the tiny Teddy bear hanging from the rear-view mirror and pointedly staring at his sister until she sighed and started the engine.

"No, it's not," she admitted, sounding a bit contrite, before she smiled and added, "I stole it."

"Izzy!" Alec exclaimed, "I can't believe you..."

"You... stole this car?" Magnus repeated, incredulous, ready to jump out of the vehicle.

Alec had implied they should break into the store if it turned out to be close and now Izzy was grinning while she confessed her crime? Neither of these hellish siblings was better than the other!

"Look, no car rental is open at this hour of the day!" Isabelle justified herself, "And we need to get away quickly, so..."

"Why can't we catch the next train, though?" Magnus asked, a bit desperate to find another way to travel than using this stolen car, no matter how comfortable the leather upholstery felt underneath his ass.

"It's only a matter of time before they find our friend in the toilet," Izzy answered as she drove away. "The whole train traffic will be interrupted and we'll be stuck. We'll keep this car for a while, then ditch it and find another one."

"Rental, this time?" Magnus suggested.

"If you insist," Izzy snorted. "Settle down and try to sleep, Magnus. We'll have to make a few detours to be sure we're not being followed anymore."

"Who was that guy?" he asked, finally tired of keeping his questions to himself. "Was he after me or you? And where did you two learn to fight like that?!"

He tried not to notice the way his voice turned a bit shriller by the end of his sentence, still remembering in a vivid way how Isabelle had taken out that man, crushing his windpipe with her thighs like some superhero or secret agent out of a movie. This had been much realer than a movie though: that man had not stood up again.

Through the mirror, Magnus caught the hesitant glance Izzy cast to her brother and he was about to demand answers a bit more rudely, tired of being kept in the dark, when Alec whispered softly, as if reliving events from the past:

"Life happened. It runs in the family anyway... Sooner or later, we would have had to learn."

"Cryptic, much?"

"I'm not being cryptic," Alec protested. "It's called being careful with the information I choose to reveal."

"You don't trust me," Magnus summed up with an involuntary pout.

"That's not it, Magnus," Isabelle answered. "Listen, our family has... enemies. I think that man was after us, not you, although he might have guessed who you are."

"Not even sure myself," he mumbled.

"I'm sure you'll figure it out," she said, her voice soothing and comforting. "If any of the people after us find out about you though, they might take precautions so we don't get to Lilith."

"Lilith?" Magnus repeated, the name foreign to his ears and his tongue.

"Your aunt," Alec chimed in. "The one you'll need to convince before we can see Asmodeus."

"What?!" he exclaimed, taken aback, before the surprise gave way to unexpected anger and oddly enough, _fear_. "You never said I had to convince anyone!"

"We told you about meeting Asmodeus and..."

"Yes, Asmodeus!" Magnus pointed out, interrupting Alec, "Only him! You never said anything about anyone else and... Look, I don't want to lie! I'll already have to stand in front of Asmodeus and lie to his face, I don't..."

"Stop," Alec told him, with surprising gentleness. "If you _are_ his son, you won't be lying."

"But I don't know if I'm him!"

"You won't know until you meet Asmodeus and, at the very least, Lilith," Isabelle backed her brother. "If Lilith has faith in you enough, you'll meet Asmodeus and then, you will be certain, one way or another. Forget that you're doing this for _us_. Do it for yourself."

Magnus slumped lower on his seat, his fingers running through Chairman Meow's hair as he purred on his lap. He hated that the siblings were right... They had said it themselves: he could be Asmodeus' lost son and if he didn't go trough with this, he would never know for sure. If it turned out that he was wrong, that he wasn't that hoped-for son... At least that would be one person he was not, leaving him free to look for himself elsewhere.

"If I have to convince Lilith," he started, resigned, "you probably have to start teaching me what you know about the one I'm supposed to be."

"Of course," Izzy answered, sounding far too excited for her own good, "Alec will take care of it. I'm driving, I need to focus. He tells stories better than I do anyway."

Alec grumbled, apparently disagreeing, but he twisted in his seat and turned toward Magnus anyway. He didn't say anything at first though: he looked at the younger man, stared even, and Magnus was fighting the urge to fidget, to boop his nose maybe - which would be stupid, knowing what he knew about Alec's character - but he really wanted to do something to make him stop staring.

"I apologise," Alec suddenly uttered, "for earlier. Thought I should get that out before we start. So... I'm sorry."

Magnus blinked. He hadn't imagined... that Alec would be affected by what had happened between them in the restroom. He had thought that the older man would just ignore it, or perhaps stay mad 'til the end of time. Maybe he really hadn't meant to snap: who knew, maybe Magnus had asked the one question he should have kept silent on, the one question Alec considered too personal to answer. Maybe he'd been prying, without knowing so, in business that really had nothing to do with him.

"Yeah," he eventually whispered. "Me too."

  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! As always, feel free to share your thoughts, your comments mean a great deal to me!


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone! Here comes the sixth chapter, on time as promised! The next one might take a little more than a week to be updated, I'm running out of chapters written in advance... Bear with me, please, and in the meantime, enjoy this chapter! :)

  


Asmodeus' son was born in Edom, in a private room of the Central Hospital in Erchomai City, where the King had held his wife's hand as she gave birth to their child, whispering praises and encouragements. Fireworks had filled the sky when the announcement had been made, bringing joy to the nation, although no one was happier than the royal couple.

He - Magnus? - was born during a summer night, fresher than the hot day but still warm. That year, summer had been especially beautiful and Asmodeus had often be seen with his baby in his arms as he wandered through the gardens, showing the plants and flowers to his son who couldn't care less, sleeping or crying or just focused on his father's face, rather than the bushes that carried colourful flowers.

Months after the birth of his son, who was maybe none other than Magnus himself, Asmodeus had stopped cutting his hair, allowing it to grow, because his child's favourite activity was to pull on his father's locks and giggle at the exaggerated expression of pain he made whenever small fingers closed around his black hair and tugged.

During his first years, Magnus had grown surrounded by the love of a father and a mother who made sure to spend time with him in spite of their responsibilities, divided between meetings they had to attend and trips to go onto. When they left, he either stayed at the palace under his preceptor's supervision to play and, sometimes, follow his older cousin Lorenzo around, or his aunt Lilith picked him up for a day outside, at the zoo, the aquarium or anything else that would catch the attention of a three- or four-year-old boy.

It was nice, Magnus thought as Alec spoke - although he wondered how the older man knew all of this - to imagine that perhaps part of his childhood had been happy and carefree. However, none of the events he recalled, none of the people he mentioned roused any spark from his sleepy memory. Magnus had hoped that somehow, Alec telling him about the early life of Asmodeus' son would create a sort of shock, powerful enough to make it all come back to him. It hadn't. Did it mean that he wasn't the lost prince? Or could he still entertain a faint hope that memory loss just didn't work that way?

"You shouldn't drive," Magnus told Alec that evening, after one full day spent in the car.

They had taken their only break around noon, just long enough for them to eat a sandwich at the small café on the side of the road - a place lost between two towns, with few people inside and therefore, all the more enjoyable for lunch - and also long enough for Chairman Meow to run after a mouse and miserably fail to catch it as it slipped through a crack in the wall.

"I'll be fine," Alec said.

Izzy didn't protest, even though just like Magnus, she knew her brother shouldn't be driving with his injured arm. She was too tired to keep driving though and since Magnus had no idea where they were supposed to go, Alec had decided to replace Isabelle behind the wheel for the night. The siblings wanted to put as much distance as possible between the three of them and the place where Izzy had stolen the car, understandably so, hence why they would keep travelling through the night, although Magnus had prayed they would get the chance to rest properly. His back still hurt from the previous night, that he'd spent freezing on a hard bench.

"Are you sure?" Magnus asked in worry while Izzy dozed off.

"Yeah," Alec answered, before he promptly switched to another topic. "So, when is your birthday?"

"Are you kidding me?" Magnus whispered furiously, trying not to bother Isabelle, "You know I have no idea! I don't even know who I am!"

Alec glared at him pointedly through the rear-view mirror and Magnus suddenly understood why he'd asked. Oops.

"Oh..." he said, "You meant _his_ birthday?"

"Which is also yours, until we get either a positive or a negative answer," Alec reminded him.

Right. That was easy to say for him... Alec wasn't the one who had to pretend to be someone he wasn't. Or maybe he was. That was just confusing.

"Twenty-second of July," Magnus grumbled.

"Good," the other male praised him, like a teacher with his student, which they kind of were, actually. "How old will you be next July?"

"Twenty-one."

According to his own calculations, he already was. However, Asmodeus' son was only a five-year-old kid when he'd been abducted, while the doctor who had checked on Magnus at the orphanage had deemed him a bit older... Six, perhaps even seven. Maybe he hadn't been a very good doctor. Maybe Magnus had been taller than he should have been at his age?

No, no, no. He would not allow himself to think like that, to make up excuses for the differences between his and the lost prince's stories. He didn't want to convince himself that he was Asmodeus' son and experience bitter disappointment if it turned out that he wasn't.

That night, Alec asked him a few more questions about what they'd discussed during the day, until Magnus begged for mercy so he could go to sleep, Chairman Meow settling against his stomach like a hot-water bag as Magnus lay down across the backseat and draped his coat over himself. He dreamed then, although he couldn't remember what it was all about when he woke up that morning and saw that Izzy was driving again. He just felt like this dream was important... And he proceeded on being frustrated for the whole day.

  


  


"We'll stop here for the night," Isabelle said at nightfall, rousing Magnus from what light sleep he'd managed to get in the late afternoon, after another afternoon of explanations, followed by more questions to answer, from Alec.

 _Here_ was the inn they'd stopped in front of, which was a huge, white and half-timbered house with wooden window muntins that made it look like it came straight out of the medieval times.

"Really?" Magnus asked with eagerness at the thought of sleeping in an actual bed and not on a bench in the middle of a train station, nor on the backseat of the car.

"Yes!" Izzy confirmed with a bright smile, apparently as happy as he was.

He could have sworn that he saw Alec grin too, which said a lot about their previous sleeping arrangements if he looked so delighted at sleeping somewhere else than in this car, no matter how comfortable it might have been.

"It's important to change our patterns so we're not predictable," Alec explained, "If people attempt to follow us, the fact that we spent the last night driving will make them think we will tonight as well. They'll try to catch up with us further down the road, since they have no reason to believe we might stop."

"Oh," Magnus mumbled, not too happy about the reminder that they weren't completely safe, "Okay."

"Sorry," Alec added softly, probably because he'd noticed his charge's sudden sad mood. "We have to be cautious but don't worry, Izzy and I will watch over you."

"I know," Magnus whispered, and he was sure that it was the truth.

Alec might be ridiculously uptight from time to time but Magnus believed him when he said that he would protect him. Ever since the older man had apologised after snapping at him, Magnus had felt something change in their relationship, for the both of them: it seemed like they had realised that the other was human too, neither perfect nor insensitive... They both could get hurt by words, whether those formed an intrusive question or a defensive answer. In spite of that welcome progress, they were nowhere close to hugging each other like friends (which was a shame, because from what Magnus had been able to see when Alec had rolled his sleeve to clean up his wound, he had great arms.)

The three of them got out of the car with their bags, Alec balancing his own on his shoulder with his good arm while Magnus firmly held Chairman Meow against his chest, just hard enough to keep him from fleeing to run after a bird while still enabling him to breathe.

"We'll room together," the older man said as they entered the inn, arriving directly after in a round hall where a young receptionist was smiling at them from behind his desk, making Alec add a bit more quietly, "Safer with only one room."

Magnus nodded distractedly, not even ashamed to admit that he wasn't paying much attention to Alec but more to his surroundings. Outside and inside, the inn looked like it hadn't changed in centuries. It seemed clean, thankfully, but Magnus wouldn't have been surprised to find out the inn didn't have running water. Where exactly had Izzy decided to stop?

He didn't actually ask, because his brain conjured a plausible answer right as he wondered about it: it was probably part of the whole _confuse-our-enemies plan_. After all, who would have thought that their trio would decide to relax and spend the night in a calm inn that made it seem like time had stopped? The people after them would think of a shady motel room before they even fathomed a possible stop in such a place.

"Good evening," the young man, a boy really, greeted them as they made their way toward him.

"Hey," Izzy said to him with a smile, "My brother, his boyfriend and I would like to rent a room for the night, if that's possible?"

Alec choked, Magnus spluttered, but Isabelle ignored both of their reactions to grin a bit wider at the receptionist.

"One room only?" the latter asked, eyeing them with surprise.

"Yeah, I'm stuck with these two lovebirds," Izzy joked, rolling her eyes, "Students budget, you know? Road trip."

"Sure," the young man answered with a chuckle, before he looked at the register on his desk - no computer nor card reader, Magnus noticed. "Sorry, I didn't mean to pry. So... You're in luck, we still have two free rooms with two twin beds each. Does one of these work for you?"

"That would be perfect," the young woman replied with a smile, already grabbing her wallet from her bag to pay cash.

"Just one question," Alec interfered before his sister could hand over the money, "Are pets allowed?"

He pointed at Chairman Meow, who tried to lick his fingertip, and the receptionist smiled while Magnus felt himself melt at Alec's thoughtful consideration.

"Of course your little friend is welcome, except in the dining-room," the boy said. "While we're at it, we include breakfast in the cost for one night. We serve lunch and dinner as well, although those are extras."

"Great," Alec said with a nod, "then it's settled. We're staying."

Magnus blinked in surprise, understanding Alec's words for what they were: an unspoken affirmation that they wouldn't have spent one more minute in that place if Chairman Meow hadn't been allowed to stay with them all. He... didn't quite know what to make of that. Did Alec really care about his cat or was he just trying to make up for their past misunderstandings?

He couldn't consider this much longer: the three of them followed the receptionist up a series of old, creaking stairs and into a bedroom with the aforementioned twin beds, as well as a table, a narrow bathroom and a small window that Alec proceeded to spy through, probably to make sure that no one would be able to climb up there and murder them in their sleep. Magnus shuddered.

"Shower and then dinner?" Isabelle suggested as soon as the receptionist left their room.

"Fuck yes," Magnus answered before Alec could say anything, "I feel like I haven't been clean in years."

"It's been two days," Alec pointed out.

"Same difference," Magnus shot back, "I call dibs on the shower!"

And then he was gone, leaving Chairman Meow with the siblings as he snatched his bag from the floor and locked the bathroom door behind him. The inn did have, surprisingly enough, running water and Magnus might have spent just a few more minutes than he really needed in order to wash his hair and the fatigue of the road away. When he came out of the bathroom, clean and wearing fresh clothes, Izzy swayed past him to hop in the shower as well, leaving him alone with Alec... again.

The older man didn't speak, which at first made him a bit uncomfortable with the silence, until he realised that the siblings had put their bags on each side of the same bed, leaving the other for him alone.

"Thanks," he whispered, as if scared to break the silence, "for the bed."

"You're welcome," Alec answered, "Izzy thought you'd feel more comfortable sleeping on your own than with her... or me. Speaking of which, I'm sorry if she upset you with what she said earlier. About you and I being..."

"Boyfriends?" Magnus finished for him, giving a small, awkward laugh. "Why would I be upset? It's not as if I was strictly into girls. Now, if the thought of having a boyfriend upsets _you_..."

"I'm gay, Magnus," Alec interrupted him, gently, perhaps even a bit hesitantly.

"Oh," he mumbled, taken by surprise, "Uh... Great, perfect. I mean, for you, not because... Well. Shutting up now?"

Alec nodded, making a weird face that was apparently his attempt at _not_ laughing, and Magnus busied himself with putting Chairman Meow on his knees and petting him - as well as cooing at him like an idiot. Everything but allow his mouth to run or his mind to work faster than needed to come up with interesting theories. What was Isabelle playing at? If she knew, and she probably did, that her brother was gay, had she tried to get them closer to each other with her offhanded comment to the receptionist?

Oh shit, had she noticed that Alec's arms made him kind of horny? As well as his face, no need to lie... Crap, sleeping in the same room as Alec was going to be harder than anticipated. He was glad Izzy hadn't pushed them to sleep in the same bed, which could have gotten really awkward in the morning.

Luckily for him, Alec didn't say anything else and Izzy, when she came back into the room, didn't make any comment either. She checked the lock of the door while her brother showered - could these two be any more paranoid? - and obviously deemed it good enough, because she plopped down on her bed and heaved a sigh of contentment.

"Feeling good?" Magnus asked with a chuckle.

"Very," she mumbled, "I could skip dinner and sleep but Alec would probably go all mother hen on me, so..."

Magnus laughed a bit more. He could picture the older man being protective, overly and not quite gently so, since he had experienced it firsthand but to imagine him being careful and tender was harder to do. Alec gave out the bodyguard vibe, not really the concerned brother one. Magnus wasn't trying to say that the other male was incapable of being kind, quite the contrary, as Alec had shown several times already. He just couldn't summon to his mind the image of Alec dotting on his sister who, after all, was perfectly fine taking care of herself.

While they waited for the older man, Magnus fed Chairman Meow, leaving enough food out of the bag so that his cat wouldn't get bored and attack the delicate lacework of the short curtains on each side of the window. He would feel more at ease that way and wouldn't worry about the room getting utterly destroyed while the siblings and he had dinner together.

Magnus was starting to get really hungry by the time Alec walked out of the bathroom, hair dripping wet still. He was wearing yet another dark turtleneck but this time, Magnus didn't comment on his black and grey wardrobe. They hadn't argued in twenty-four hours and he didn't want to go back to it: he was actually relieved that Alec and he were civil to each other and in speaking terms.

"So, dinner?" Alec asked, massaging his wet hair with a towel.

"Yeah," Izzy answered, "I'm starving. Let's go!"

Magnus found it funny how their little group's departure from the bedroom was different from their arrival: roughly one hour prior, they had been slow behind the receptionist, three weary people wishing for a shower and nothing else, while they were currently cheerier, glad to get a proper dinner after nearly two full days of snacking on biscuits and crappy sandwiches.

Isabelle found a table in a corner of the large dining-room and Magnus wasn't even surprised when she and her brother sat with their backs to the wall so they could keep an eye on the entrance, just in case. The tables next to theirs were free for the most part, save for three. A young couple with a baby sat at one of those, while the two others were occupied by older people, probably close to their sixties. Magnus glanced at Izzy and Alec, who had checked the other patrons as well and seemed a bit more relaxed. He was glad they had come to the same conclusion, the three of them: these people shouldn't be considered as threats. Maybe they would be able to relax and enjoy their dinner?

It seemed so, because neither of the siblings sounded tense as they ordered and Magnus could have sworn Alec even smiled at the waiter who brought their drinks to their table. It was a tiny smile, sure, his lips barely curling up, but it was there nonetheless and it looked genuine, so Magnus decided to take it as a good sign.

"How do you know this place?" he asked Isabelle as they drank and waited for their meals to arrive. "This doesn't look like the kind of inn that makes it into travel guides..."

"It could," she answered with a laugh, "This place is old, it earns points for the authenticity... I guess tourists like more modern hotels, though? Alec and I stopped here a few times with our family when we were younger."

"Did you travel a lot?" Magnus asked again, eager to learn more about these mysterious siblings that had taken him under their wings for this weird adventure.

So far, all he had been able to find out about them was through actions: they could fight like warriors, Alec had a gun and drove sometimes too recklessly for Magnus' stomach, the siblings trusted each other with their life... For once, he could perhaps learn something they would actually share with him, in a nice, civil discussion. If they didn't seize their chance to talk now, while they were in a place where they could afford to be a bit more laidback, they never would.

"We had to," Alec answered, laconic as always.

"Our dad lost his job when we were kids," Isabelle told him, rolling her eyes at her brother's lack of social skills. "After that, we spent some time on the road... And here."

"A weird place," Magnus commented, "but nice."

"Very," Alec muttered.

A man of few words... At least he had opened just a tiny part of himself, admitting that he liked the inn. Magnus wondered if it reminded him of good times, with his sister and his parents, although considering the circumstances in which their family had ended up there, he doubted the joyfulness of these times.

That conversation died down, thanks to Alec's abrupt answer, but Izzy and the ease with which she talked about anything with anyone made up for the older man's sullenness and Magnus allowed himself to forget about him, even though he had been on his mind every single second of every day since they'd met, to engage Isabelle into a much happier discussion that only ended when their dishes came.

Alec might have said nothing at all while he talked with his sister but Magnus hadn't missed the way his eyes had stayed on him at all times... A gaze he didn't know how to interpret. He hadn't forgotten the interest in Alec's eyes either, back at the Hunter's moon, nor the heads-up from Jace, who had assured him that he was Alec's type, but what could he really understand from the older man's looks? Had Alexander taken his sweet time to stare at him because he apparently looked like the lost prince? Was it for more personal reasons? Both?

While these stares didn't make him uncomfortable - it wasn't as if he didn't stare back more often than he liked to admit, because Alec was a handsome man - Magnus really wanted to know what to make of them. Should he feel honoured or terrified? They hadn't given him any reason to doubt their intentions but living in such close proximity with the siblings made him forget that he didn't really know them and even though they - or at least Izzy - smiled at him, he couldn't just close his eyes and ignore some of their more alarming features, such as their fighting skills or Alec's gun. Those served a purpose and Magnus just hoped he wouldn't end on the wrong side of it.

Musing on these thoughts as they left the dining-room after dinner, Magnus was trying to relax by telling himself that he was tired and a bit confused with everything that had happened during the last days. He had to focus on the important matters, the things he'd experienced, and not just the fickle products of his imagination: Alec and Izzy were protecting him. Helping him. Taking him to Edom, giving him a chance to live the life he'd always wanted for himself. And if Alec was actually interested in him and not only in his face that was so similar to that of Asmodeus' son...

Well. Why the hell not? Magnus wouldn't deny that he felt a strange attraction to Alec who, albeit taciturn, annoying and too tense for his own good, was also fiercely protective and oozed calm strength, like a rock, a pillar in a stormy life - his and the siblings', as it seemed. Yet, Magnus still worried about the aftermath of all this, once he'd done what Izzy and Alec wanted him to, once he was in Edom... He feared to be left alone. Again.

It was too easy to rely, depend, on Isabelle and Alexander, too tempting to allow himself to just follow their lead and, for once in his life, give control to someone else. Because sooner or later, they would leave and Magnus didn't want to feel lost without them when that time came. The walls around his heart had to stay tall and strong. He couldn't afford to let them crumble.

Lost in these considerations, Magnus didn't notice the small step between the dining-room and the hallway before his left foot caught on it. He stumbled, and he would probably have hit his head against the wall if Alec's hand coming around his arm hadn't held him back. Swift and gentle, albeit firm, his fingers briefly dug into his skin, not deep enough to bruise, just hard enough to pull and let go, a lingering ghost of warmth trailing on Magnus' skin through his sweater.

"Thanks," he said, blinking, a bit surprised.

"You're welcome," Alec answered softly, all trace of his previous gloominess gone. "Be careful."

Magnus didn't say as much but if every time he wasn't careful enough, he got to feel Alec's hands on him, he might stop being cautious altogether - which was exactly what he dreaded: losing his independence, his capacity to watch after himself... And all of it for a pair of gorgeous hazel eyes? It wouldn't do.

  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! As always, comments are much welcome and an incredible motivation. See you next time!


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone :) As I explained on Twitter, I finished two chapters so I could post this one while still having one chapter done in advance. With this one, I think we're halfway through the story. Hope you like it!

  


Sleeping in a real bed with an actual mattress - and not on a car backseat- did wonders to Alec's mood, which had not been too lively during the previous evening. Coming back to this inn felt like both a blessing and a torture as he reminisced about other times, good ones with Izzy as they ran around the wild garden next to the parking outside, less good ones when it came to his parents. Alec still remembered the anger on his mother's face and the far-away look of despair on his father's as they argued at night, thinking their kids were asleep and wouldn't hear nor see them. How wrong they had been...

A hearty breakfast finished soothing his mind and pushing away the bad memories. By the time they checked out, around eight o'clock, he felt more relaxed than he had since the attack in the train, even though his forearm still pulsed with pain from time to time. Isabelle, Magnus and he were ready to go, bags back on shoulders and Chairman Meow safely carried in his owner's arms, when Alec realised that the younger man's eyes were wandering into the small common room with interest. Following Magnus' gaze, Alec saw a piano and when he looked back at his protégé, the young man heaved a sigh.

"I've always wanted to play," he confessed, surprising Alec. "There was a piano at the orphanage but... the other kids never let me try it."

The... orphanage? Alec blinked, for he hadn't known Magnus had grown up in one of those, since he didn't think the young man had mentioned it before... Unless he hadn't paid attention? Magnus did say that he was hoping to find his family in Edom but he hadn't realised... No, of course he hadn't realised what the implications were: hearing Magnus' story had not been on his top priority list when they'd met and then, they just hadn't had the occasion. When they weren't busy snapping at each other, Alec was hammering information about the lost prince into the young man's brain. He realised that he had cared more about the kid's story than Magnus'. Rude. Insensitive. Like a soldier living for his mission only, without care for possible collateral damage.

Whether it was out of remorse or because of the deep, longing melancholy in Magnus' voice and eyes - maybe even because of Izzy's pointed look - Alec didn't know but he nodded at the young man all the same and said:

"Ten minutes."

"I'm sorry?" Magnus asked, his brows arching in confusion.

"We leave in ten," Alec explained, letting his bag plop on the ground, "Izzy used to play. She can teach you a short and easy piece, maybe?"

"Really?!"

Magnus turned wide and hopeful eyes toward Isabelle, who smiled at him and grabbed his hand to lead him into the room and behind the piano, where they sat side by side on the bench while Alec leaned his shoulder against the door jamb. The excitement of a deprived child finally seeing his dream come true shone in Magnus' eyes as he watched Izzy's deft fingers fly across the black and white keys, drawing sounds from the piano that Alec had never quite managed to copy, no matter how hard his father tried to teach him. Izzy had always been the prodigy in their family... Alec had been the soldier.

"Try," Isabelle encouraged Magnus, helping him to position his fingers, "Gentle and supple, but determined. Make it sing."

Alec briefly closed his eyes when the younger man took a chance and started to play. There was no surprise, no hidden talent there: Magnus wasn't amazing, his pace was choppy as he hesitated, his fingers slow to switch keys, but still there was something, in that upset rhythm, that spoke to his heart. The attempt was clumsy but heartfelt and Magnus was having fun, the smile on his face a clear proof of it, until he glanced at Alec.

He didn't know what kind of expression Magnus saw on his face but he suddenly blushed and lost his focus, a wrong note echoing in the room as his hand slipped.

"Sorry," Magnus apologised to Isabelle as she showed him the correct key.

"It's okay, you don't have to apologise," she comforted him, "I didn't expect you to get it right from the start."

"I would have," Magnus promised, before he added quietly, "I would, if Alexander didn't make me nervous."

"Nervous?" Alec repeated, dumbfounded. "I didn't say anything!"

"I know," the younger man chuckled, sounding a bit embarrassed by his own confession, "You just do."

Magnus' words stirred an unexpected pain in his chest. Alec had never wanted to make him uncomfortable by looking at him while he played, he hadn't meant to spoil Magnus' pleasure in this experience. He'd just... watched and marvelled at him a little bit. Too much, perhaps? So much that he'd ruined it for the younger man as well as for himself, because he dreaded that the truce edging on peace they'd made with much effort was slowly crumbling.

"I'll be in the car," he decided abruptly.

"That's not what I..." Magnus started to protest with a worried frown, although he shut up when Alec picked up his bag.

"I'll be in the car," he repeated, aiming for a softer voice. "You play. Just don't forget that we have to leave."

"We'll be there in five," Izzy reassured him, her voice gentle, as if she understood what was going on in his head better than he even did.

Alec nodded and left without looking back but he didn't go fast enough to miss Magnus' following words, whispered on a tone so dejected that it somewhat soothed the young man's burns, because perhaps Magnus would have liked for him to stay - but the thought also hurt even more.

"I didn't meant that I wanted him gone," Magnus said.

"I know," Izzy answered, "but that's Alec for you: intimidating as hell but also incredibly sensitive."

Right, Alec thought as he stomped outside and threw the bags in the trunk of the car with unnecessary force. He would have preferred for his sister not to say anything; Izzy wasn't wrong, although he hated to admit it but still, he didn't want Magnus to think of him as a whiny or oversensitive man. Not that he wanted Magnus to think about him in away special way. Not at all.

When his sister and their charge walked out of the inn a few minutes later, Alec noticed Magnus' happy expression but he didn't point it out and he didn't ask if he'd gotten the piece right this time around either. It would be better and also less awkward to just drop it and ignore anything had happened in the first place. Pretend. Alec had a knack for that.

  


  


"So Lorenzo is my cousin... On my mother's side?" Magnus said with some hesitation, trying to sum up what Izzy had just taught him, looking at a set of pictures and pointing at a man with a goatee.

"Yeah," Isabelle answered in a breath.

Alec had to refrain from laughing at her obvious relief, for Magnus had struggled to memorise which name went with which picture during the previous hour. The siblings understood though: Magnus didn't remember his parents and now, he had to look at foreign faces and consider them family.

He had hoped that somehow, seeing Asmodeus' face or his relatives' would put something back in place in the younger man's memory, although that was dangerous wishing, for if Magnus remembered his past - a past that didn't involve Asmodeus - it might throw off their whole plan. Alec hated himself a little to think that way... After all, wouldn't it be a good thing if Magnus found out who he was? Yes. And no.

"And Lilith is my aunt on my father's side," Magnus added, unaware of Alec's thoughts as his voice grew firmer now, glad as he was to have gotten Lorenzo right.

"Also correct," Izzy said with a smile. "She's Asmodeus' sister and also his most precious adviser, although she doesn't officially bear that title. She's a very influential woman and she has quite a lot to say about the way things go in Edom, which is also why we're going to pay her a visit before going to Erchomai City."

"If she doesn't accept or believe me..." Magnus started with a wince.

"Then it's no use going to Asmodeus himself," Alec finished his thought, glancing at Magnus and his sister through the rear-view mirror. "I don't see why she wouldn't believe you though... She's almost as desperate to see her nephew again as Asmodeus is. She doesn't really like Lorenzo, who's the King's designated heir in the absence of his son. Lilith's own boy..."

"Jonathan, right?" Magnus interrupted him, sounding eager to confront his recently acquired knowledge to the truth.

"Jonathan, yes," Alec repeated, smiling in satisfaction at the young man's progress while still looking at the road ahead, so that Magnus couldn't see it. "He's only eleven, so Lorenzo is first in line for the title of King when Asmodeus dies."

"Why doesn't she like Lorenzo?" Magnus enquired with curiosity. "They are family..."

"Being family doesn't mean you get along perfectly well," Izzy answered.

"Oh," he mumbled, looking down at the pictures again.

Of course Magnus wouldn't know, Alec thought bitterly, feeling sad on the younger man's behalf. Family was something he couldn't understand, for he had known his but couldn't remember it and he hadn't even had the chance to find a second family in friends. If Edom's royal family turned out not to be Magnus'... Alec knew that he would blame himself for bringing Magnus into his and Izzy's business and making him hope before ruining everything for him.

Right now, Magnus did indeed hope. He had tried to hide it but Alec had noticed, had understood the glimmer of longing in his eyes, and he didn't want to disappoint him. Shit. Maybe accepting Magnus to play this role had been a bad idea. Perhaps he should have met the guy Izzy had found instead but how could he have known that he would grow to care about Magnus like this?

"Lilith used to dislike Lorenzo's father," Alec said before he could get too deep in his thoughts. "She found him too hot-headed, too disrespectful to Asmodeus, too... eager to put his own son on the throne back when Asmodeus didn't have children. But then he did. I think Lilith sees a lot of his father in Lorenzo."

"She sounds really protective," Magnus pointed out.

"Little sisters can be protective of their big brothers, that's true," Isabelle joked, glancing at Alec with a smile. "Lilith was and still is, especially now that the King is so alone."

"Meaning?" the younger man asked curiously.

Alec focused on the road, his knuckles turning white on the wheel. He wasn't sure that Izzy had wanted to go there... Asmodeus' son or not, this wouldn't be pleasant to hear.

"Well, I mean... Asmodeus..." Izzy stalled, biting her lips, realising too late that she should have phrased it in another way. "Asmodeus lost his only child. He never knew what happened to him, never got the closure he should have gotten in order to move on. There was the Queen, too, and she... Well. She died of sorrow, two years after their son's kidnapping."

Magnus gasped, his eyes widening as he paled.

"So this means..." he started, horrified. "If I'm their son, it... it means I killed my own mother?"

"No," Izzy said firmly. "If you are their son, it means you were a victim. An abducted kid who lost his memories and wouldn't have known how to get back to Edom anyway. The people who are responsible for the Queen's passing are those who took you away from her in the first place."

Magnus nodded, albeit distantly, as if Izzy's words hadn't really branded themselves into his mind. Alec wondered what he was thinking about. Was he digging a deeper hole to bury himself in guilt he shouldn't be feeling in the first place, was he mourning for a mother he didn't know and couldn't even be sure was his?

Alec slowed down as he reached a red light, glad that he had to keep watching the road and thus couldn't think too much, otherwise he would have started to feel guilty as well, although for different reasons. In hindsight, maybe it would have been better to stay at odds with Magnus instead of trying to make peace and become his friend - because whether he wanted to admit it or not, that was slowly happening. If it hadn't though, he wouldn't have to feel bad for the young man. The thought of making that easy choice, of not caring, made his stomach churn with discomfort.

He wasn't like that and his presence in this car proved it more effectively than hundreds of long speeches. Alec cared too much for his own sake.

  


  


Magnus woke up feeling disoriented, his mouth dry and the nagging ghost of a dream fleeting away from his now conscious mind. He was still in a stolen car, he realised as his heavy eyelids opened and enabled him to look around. It was snowing again, maelstrom of white on the other side of the windows, the scenery barely visible both because of the darkness of the night and the closeness of the snowflakes together.

Did he dream of snow? He felt like he had. He wasn't sure anymore... After a few seconds, he stopped trying to remember. He thought he had been running through the snow but he couldn't be certain of it, so it would be useless to rack his brain any longer.

"Slept well?" Izzy asked next to him, once again behind the wheel.

"You could say that," Magnus grumbled, wishing he could have slept some more, "What time is it?"

"Five in the morning," the young woman answered, glancing at the dashboard of the vehicle. "I think we'll be able to get to Edom tonight, after a well-deserved break."

"How long have you been driving?" he enquired.

Magnus couldn't remember Alec and her switching places while he was awake. Had he been out that long? His night felt way too short - or maybe that was just the tiredness of the road speaking.

"Alec's arm started acting up again around half past ten, even though he didn't want to admit it," she explained with annoyance, quickly shooting a dark look behind her shoulder and to the backseat. "I nearly had to smack him to get him to stop and let me drive so he could rest."

Magnus glanced at the older man as well, wondering why he hadn't told them anything if his arm hurt like that... He couldn't say he was surprised, though: Magnus was pretty sure that Alexander had a hero complex, keeping him from admitting to any weakness. However, this kind of consideration completely left his mind when he took the time to actually register what was happening on the backseat and he witnessed a betrayal that stung deep.

"Traitor," he whispered to the ball of fur that was happily sleeping in its new nest - meaning, on Alexander's chest.

The older man was asleep as well, sprawled across the backseat, his long legs positioned in an odd way that couldn't be comfortable. He was horribly attractive like this, even with his mouth open and his awful but persistent turtleneck that hid a neck Magnus would have loved to bury his face in to sleep peacefully... Which was exactly what he had told himself he didn't need: he could perfectly well be comfortable and okay without him.

What killed him wasn't only Alec's still gorgeousness, however. He looked relaxed, more than Magnus had ever seen him, even that previous morning when they'd left the inn feeling pretty fresh and restored, and his whole face was changed. Gone, the furrowed brows. Vanished, the constant frown, disappeared, the anguish in his eyes. Magnus tried not to heed the next thought, wild and surprising, that crossed his mind: it was this version of Alec that he wanted to see. Mortified at his own trail of thoughts, Magnus huffed, wishing he could find in himself the strength to be mad at Alexander for making him entertain such ridiculous ideas. He couldn't. So he kept staring at the young man, feeling his own features soften more and more.

The cherry on top was Chairman Meow, curled up on Alec's chest and asleep, unbothered. It was a sight in itself but the fact that Alexander's hand had come up to rest on his cat, as if to prevent him from falling off if Izzy had to brake, finished melting Magnus' heart.

"Like what you see?" Isabelle teased him.

Magnus sat back in his seat in less than a second. Lost in contemplation, he had nearly forgotten that he wasn't alone in this car.

"No," he denied, before he amended, "Maybe?"

She snorted, the kind of snort that meant she knew more than he did - that was probably true. He wasn't sure that he really knew where he and Alec stood anymore: they weren't enemies but they weren't exactly friends either, nor were they mere acquaintances. Still, he didn't want to admit that Isabelle was right - and there he was, being as stubborn as Alexander - so he tried to bring their conversation onto another path.

"Why is he like this?" he asked her.

"What, asleep?" she giggled, "Because he was tired?"

"No," Magnus said, letting out a laugh too, aware that she was pulling his leg. "I mean... You are both so different. He's always so severe and serious, always so... _intense_. You have the same mission, don't you? So why is he like this and you're not?"

Isabelle sighed, as if she had tried to deflect the question and hoped that Magnus wouldn't bother asking again. He wasn't sorry to disappoint. He had so many questions for the siblings, some of which he'd had since their first meeting at the Hunter's moon, and the only time he had tried to ask, Alec had snapped at him. Why? He got it, some secrets were not easy to share. _He_ had, though.

He didn't want to know the siblings' secrets out of mere curiosity, nor just so they were on the same level when it came to knowing each other's dirty secrets. He was... genuinely interested. He wanted to understand, to know these people. To trust them. How could he do that when they kept him in the dark about nearly everything? Even the man who had attacked them in the train remained anonymous to him, although he was convinced that either Alec or Izzy had an inkling of who he was as well as who he worked for.

"You know..." Isabelle eventually said, her eyes on the road but her attention on Magnus, "I understood a long time ago that I wasn't just my parents' daughter. I believed that I could be my own person and I still do, even though I've followed Alec through this insane plan. To be perfectly honest, I don't care as much as he does about this whole lost heir business."

"Why are you following him, then?" Magnus asked, his brows furrowing in wonder.

Isabelle had seemed as determined as Alec to go through this adventure, teaching Magnus when her brother was not, driving while he rested - she'd even stolen a car for them! Even if she didn't put her whole soul into this enterprise like Alexander, at least part of her heart was in it.

"I'm staying by his side because he's my brother," Izzy answered with a shrug, as if it was not only the right but also the normal thing to do, not that Magnus would know much about what was considered usual in sibling relationships anyway, "and I support his decisions, even when they are stupid-ass decisions. I'm not talking about you, though."

"I appreciate the clarification," Magnus mumbled, before he cleared his voice and pried for a little more information. "Support and involvement are two different things, though..."

"Right," Izzy chuckled when she realised that Magnus wasn't going to give up, at least not until she actually told him to fuck off, much like her brother previously had. "I'm helping Alec as much as I can and... I don't know, I guess I'm hoping the faster it's done, the faster he can focus on himself again? I want... I want to see my brother happy, Magnus. I'm tired of seeing him torture himself about Asmodeus."

"Why does he do that?" he asked again, almost desperate to get an answer. "He... You're not related to Asmodeus and his family, are you? Then why does he even care?"

This time, Isabelle bit her lower lip and Magnus knew she wouldn't answer him. Not really. He was right, too, for she added quietly:

"Alec thinks that our family's burdens and failures are his responsibility to shoulder and fix."

Magnus could have asked what she meant but he didn't, able to understand when he'd lost a fight. He knew, based on the way Izzy's lips turned into a thin line, that she wouldn't say anything else on the matter, so he decided to drop the subject and not to pry. Maybe Isabelle thought Alec should be the one to explain to him how he felt about this mission? If so, Magnus wasn't sure he would ever get an answer.

  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for reading! As always, comments are much welcome - and they help me feel confident about this x) See you next time!


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm back! Sorry for the delay, work at school was hard on me and I'm currently giving more horse-riding lessons than usual since the main coach had to undergo surgery and won't be back at the stables for another week... So the next chapter might be late as well and I apologise, but I promise I'll do my best to keep giving regular updates! In the meantime, enjoy this chapter :)

  


"We're almost there, everybody out!" Alec announced triumphantly around seven o'clock that evening, slowing the car down until he stopped completely on the side of the road, underneath tall, probably old firs that cluttered the roots of the mountains between Idris and Edom. "Let's go, we're on our feet for now."

"How far is the border?" Magnus asked with excitement as he rolled the thin blanket he'd put on his shoulders while he napped and threw it in his bag without much care. "We'll have to walk for twenty minutes, something like that," Isabelle answered in Alec's stead, since her brother had already left the car to take out the other bags in the trunk, using a flashlight to see where he stepped in spite of the dark.

On top of his and his sister's bags, Alec also grabbed a map, and when Magnus and Izzy followed him out, he showed their current location to the young man.

"From here, we go there," Alec said as he followed a path between two different points of the map with his finger. "It should take twenty minutes, although with the snow and the darkness we'll surely make it thirty or forty, unless we want to break our necks. We can't take much longer than that though, or else we'll be late for our rendezvous."

"Rendezvous?" Magnus repeated in surprise, "We're meeting someone? Who?"

"A friend," Alec answered, half-expecting the younger man to complain about his cryptic explanations once again.

When he didn't though, Alec glanced at him, wondering whether they had really managed to overcome the hostility of their first days - he sure hoped so - or whether there was a problem. Magnus didn't look frightened, nor did he seem annoyed with him, so... Maybe they had truly made more progress than even he had hoped.

Despite their growing closeness, Alec always felt a bit on edge, nervous... Scared, if he was being honest, that they would suddenly go back in time and start snapping at each other all day long again. They were doing fine for now but a setback could happen so fast... There were so many things Magnus still didn't know about Izzy and him. Telling him would be the right call to make but then, why would Magnus trust them any longer? Alec had decided not to say anything for now, eager to preserve his sort of peaceful relationship with Magnus, and he prayed that it wouldn't come back to bite him in the ass later.

"Ready?" he asked his companions once they'd all hoisted their bag on their shoulder, flashlights in hand.

Izzy gave a quick jerk of her head to confirm but Magnus nodded feverishly, showing his impatience as he shuffled his feet, waiting for them to actually start walking. Alec smiled when he glanced at the younger man, although not because of his eagerness, to which he and his sister could relate perfectly well. After all, they, too, had left Edom a long time ago... Neither of them had thought they would ever set foot in the country again before they began searching for a candidate to play Asmodeus' son.

Still, he smiled, because even though Magnus hadn't heeded his advice of putting Chairman Meow in his bag, he had at least realised that hiking in the dark and using the flashlight would not be easy tasks, not if he had to keep his cat in his arms. Instead, Chairman Meow's little head was now peeking from inside Magnus' coat, firmly buttoned up, and it made for a funny sight as they both looked at him and blinked in expectative.

"Let's go," he said with a chuckle, although he tried to hide it beneath a cough so that Magnus wouldn't think he was laughing at him.

He might do his best to trust that they wouldn't go back to their previous ways and bicker back and forth all night long, he still didn't want to test Magnus' patience... So he moved forward, sparing one last thought to the owner of the car Izzy had stolen: whoever that person was, they must be so mad! Maybe, if their plan worked and his sister and he got the reward, they could offer another car to that wronged person, as a compensation. A debt erased, which seemed to be Alec's speciality.

However, he didn't really want to think about what Izzy and he would do once it was all over, for if they succeeded, if Magnus was accepted into Asmodeus' family, the young man wouldn't be with them anymore. He would stay in Erchomai City and live the life of palaces, the easy one, a life where he wouldn't have to sadly watch from the side a someone else played the piano... While Alec and Izzy would have to figure out what to do with their own lives.

Well, Izzy had her future all planned already: this journey to Edom was just a detour on the path to her medical career. Alec was different. For almost his whole existence, he had thought about getting Asmodeus' son back to Edom and his plan for life had stopped there. Now that they were so close to success though, he realised that his future looked shallow, for his purpose in life would be taken away from him - and he didn't have another one.

Magnus and Isabelle were silent behind him as they walked together in the snow, cracking underneath their feet, along with a few pinecones. Alec hoped it wasn't his own dropping mood that somehow made them feel down as well... Maybe he worried for nothing. They, too, had the right to be lost in their thoughts, now that they were so close to the next step of their trip.

The path under their feet went up suddenly as they walked further into the mountain, that remained for now a gentle hill. By daylight and a summer weather, this would have been a walk in the park, yet the snow on the frozen ground, the dim glow of the flashlights, even combined, and the weight of their bags made their progression slower than anticipated.

Several times, Alec turned around to make sure that Izzy and Magnus weren't too far behind or going off tracks, what with the darkness and the way they all focused on their feet, careful not to slip and fall down. They walked for a while longer before he spotted lights on the road they had left, dozens of meters underneath the hill. Alec stopped completely and looked behind his shoulder, pressing his finger against his lips to ensure his companions' silence.

"What?" Magnus whispered nonetheless, his voice somewhere between curiosity and trepidation, "Are we there?"

"No," Izzy answered in hushed tones, having noticed the same thing as her brother, "but almost. Look..."

She pointed downwards, to the lights that came from barracks and to the dozens of men carrying guns who were entering and walking out of these buildings, wearing army uniforms. They couldn't see it from their spot high on the hill but Alec knew what flag they carried on the side of their berets: the black Rune of Idris.

"It's the border checkpoint," Alec explained, his voice so low Magnus had to take a step forward to hear him, "We definitively don't want to be seen."

"Okay," Magnus breathed out, tightening his hold on his coat - and, consequently, on Chairman Meow. "So... Where are we headed?"

"We keep on walking," Izzy answered, adjusting the duffel bag on her shoulder as she peeked over Alec's shoulder to the map. "There's a way through the mountains, our friend will help us to find it."

Magnus nodded and this time, Izzy took the lead, walking ahead of them with her flashlight held lower, so the soldiers down the hill wouldn't catch sight of any suspicious light. Alec doubted they would notice anything though, for they hadn't been walking for long when it started to snow again, slow but thick snowflakes landing softly on top of their heads and making it harder to discern the path. Magnus put on his beanie, a bit clumsily as he was only using one hand, the other busy with the flashlight, but Alec refrained from offering his help.

He'd learnt his lesson. Besides, he wasn't sure that Magnus would have accepted to let him put the beanie on for him while he carried Chairman Meow with both hands: it was too intimate a gesture.

Alec tried not to picture that scene: he and Magnus, standing face to face and close, too close to each other as he gently adjusted the beanie on the younger man's head. He would stare into Magnus' beautiful eyes and _want_ , glance at his lips and hesitate, because... Because they weren't meant to be. Sure, he could indulge and steal a taste of that mouth, perhaps Magnus would even steal right back, but then what?

Alec couldn't forget what he was doing, why he was doing it, and neither could he ignore the way the younger man would certainly react if he knew all of this, knew about the reward for the lost heir's return... This search for Asmodeus' son might have started out of interest for the reward and for these damned personal reasons Izzy kept telling him to forget about, now Alec mostly wanted to see it through for Magnus' sake. The young man deserved to find out who he was, whether or not he was royalty. What was the probability of it, though?

To be honest, he had zero idea of what the King of Edom would think of Magnus. Would it be enough to introduce him to a young man who looked like his son and had learned what he had to do, how he had to do it? Magnus wasn't the first boy claiming to be the heir to Edom's throne that Asmodeus would see, Alec knew that much, and he also knew that every man who had tried before had ended up disappointed - but not more so than the King himself. Still, since Asmodeus was getting older, weaker and more desperate, maybe this time it could work? If they were lucky?

The prospect of tricking an old, sad man didn't sit well with Alec but... What if Asmodeus truly believed that Magnus was his son? Wouldn't it be mercy, to give this tortured man a semblance of peace, of satisfaction at thinking his little boy was finally back, after all these years? Wouldn't it be a relief for Magnus to think that he finally belonged?

Even though it would most likely be a lie, a voice said in his head, sounding suspiciously like his mother's, who'd never supported that foolish idea of bringing Asmodeus his son back. Thankfully, Alec was distracted by a slow, melancholic hoot breaking the silence of the night.

Isabelle stopped without warning and Magnus almost bumped into her before he stilled as well and whispered in concern:

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing," she answered, turning around with a smile, "We're on time and... He's here."

"Who...?" Magnus started, before he swallowed the remaining words of his question as a blond man suddenly emerged from the trees on their right.

"Right on time," the latter commented with a smirk, before greeting them, "Alec, Isabelle... Great night for a bit of illegality. And... you must be Magnus?"

Alec chuckled when he saw the young man's eyes widen as this perfect stranger called him by his name, although they had never met, and he hurried to make introductions:

"This is Magnus, yes. Magnus, meet the friend we were telling you about, Underhill."

"Is that your first or last name?" the younger man asked with raised brows, unimpressed and blithe.

Alec held back another laugh, horrified to discover it would have sounded _fond_ if he'd let it out, because this was such a Magnus-like reaction! He was starting to know and understand the young man, so Alec didn't doubt that he was dying with curiosity, eager to find out everything he could about Underhill but unwilling to show it. It reminded him of the attack in the train: back then, Magnus' shock and fear had been written all over his face, even visible in the way he clutched onto his cat, and yet he had pretended to roll with it, bothering Alec about his dull wardrobe instead of freaking out. Alec knew a defence mechanism when he saw one: his own was sullen silence or stubborn denial, often both.

"Nickname," Underhill answered with a smirk. "In my line of work, we don't really give out our real names."

"And what do you do exactly?" Magnus pried, growing more and more curious and also, suspicious.

Alec was pretty sure the young man was trying to determine whether Underhill was the type to steal cars or get into a fight in the middle of a train like Izzy and him... or worse.

"Right now," their friend answered, "I'm going to get you where you want to be, unless you changed your mind?"

"No," Alec said, his voice firm, "We carry on."

"Good," Underhill acknowledged his comment with a nod, "Let's go, then."

Alec motioned Magnus to follow his friend as he led them away from the path they had been following until then. Underhill didn't carry a flashlight, confident in his mastery of the trail, knowing his way around every rock or root, even under the snow and in the dark. Alec couldn't remember how long they'd known each other nor how long Underhill had been doing this but if someone could get them to Edom safely, he was the one, no doubt.

The four of them walked in silence, mindful of the wind that could carry their voices back to the soldiers at the checkpoint, although the thickening layer of snow on the ground would drown part of the sounds, until Izzy saw that the path was disappearing between two high walls of rocks, slipping through the mountains.

"This is the way?" she whispered, a bit incredulous, as she glanced from the narrow opening in front of her to Underhill.

"It's safe, don't worry," he told her, gently grabbing her wrist to angle her flashlight toward the tunnel made by the mountains, revealing a gallery. "See? The sides are strengthened with stanchions and my team and I check them several times a year to be certain they're secure. We can go on."

Magnus, who had started to look a bit uncomfortable or unsure at the thought of going inside when Izzy had mentioned her own doubts, glanced at Alec. When he raised an eyebrow pointedly, Magnus squinted and scoffed, before he went inside first. Oh. So... Should it be worrying that Alec knew just how to push Magnus' buttons, even without trying to? A quirked brow and poof, the younger man was walking on, unwilling to let Alec believe that he was anxious or worse, _scared_.

Izzy caught up with Magnus, joining her flashlight to his own so they could step forward and actually see where they were going, while Alec and Underhill fell in step next to each other.

"So..." his friend started, his voice echoing faintly against the walls of the tunnel, in a cascade of hushed noises, as he nodded at Magnus. "Him?"

"What about him?" Alec whispered back.

"You might actually get what you've always wanted with this one," Underhill explained, "He does look like Asmodeus' son."

"I told you so, didn't I?" Alec answered with a smile, understanding all too well how much his friend could be surprised at Magnus' resemblance to members of Edom's royal family.

He tried not to fidget or bit his lip as he did his best to ignore the churning of his stomach while he thought about Underhill's words, the part where Alec could _get what he wanted_. He didn't want to use Magnus, not anymore. Of course his friend didn't know... He didn't know that Alec wanted Asmodeus to recognise Magnus for the young man's happiness and not for his own benefit, and he certainly didn't know that Alec also _didn't_ want to let Magnus go.

"Timing's perfect," Underhill added a bit more loudly in his enthusiasm, thankfully unaware of the conflict between Alec's head and his heart. "Asmodeus is sick and he has even doubled the re..."

"... the efforts to find his son, I know," Alec cut him abruptly, flashing his friend a pointed look as Magnus turned to stare at them curiously.

"Right," Underhill said, smiling at Magnus as if nothing was wrong, although Alec knew he'd ask his questions as soon as the younger man wasn't looking anymore. "Lorenzo is the one in charge these days, at least whenever Asmodeus feels too tired to keep up with the rhythm of his meetings... I think sharing some time with his son would do him a lot of good."

Magnus grumbled something that neither of them understood but Alec would bet it was something among the lines of _I might not be his son_. However, the young man turned around and kept on walking, so he didn't ask about it. He knew, anyway, how much it weighed down on Magnus to imagine that perhaps he wasn't the right person. No need to make him anguish even more about it.

Alec slowed down when Underhill's hand sneaked around his arm, holding him back. He sighed, already knowing what this would be about, and he wasn't happy to realise he was right when Magnus and Izzy were far ahead enough to enable his friend to speak without being heard.

"He doesn't know?" Underhill asked in a breath.

"Can you be a bit more specific?" Alec stalled, "What about?"

"Everything," his friend shot back, "The reward Asmodeus promised to whoever finds his son? You? Your family?"

"No, he doesn't."

And it was perfect like this, although he didn't told Underhill as much. He wouldn't agree anyway...

"Why?"

Alec shrugged, feigning disinterest. He didn't want to explain. Shit, he didn't even want to think about it in the silence of his own mind, for thinking the words, let alone pronounce them, would make everything real and more complicated than it already was and...

"Oh shit," Underhill suddenly gasped, "You..."

"Shut up," Alec warned him, without any actual heat.

"You like the guy," his friend concluded, "Shit, Alec..."

"I know," he grunted, "Trust me, I know."

Underhill didn't add anything, maybe empathetic enough to understand that Alec didn't need to be given more crap about it, that he could blame himself for it on his own like a proper grown-up, thank you very much. It helped that they had reached the other end of the tunnel, their feet sinking in the snow once more as they joined Magnus and Isabelle, and unexpected emotion shook Alec's whole body as his eyes embraced the sight in front of him.

Edom.

This side of the mountains wasn't so different from Idris'. Truthfully, the scenery looked the same but... There was something, something unnameable, in the air, in the night sky, in the tiny lights of the village they could distinguish at the feet of the mountain, that felt like _home_ , the end of his, their, wandering. He had grown up in this country. He knew this land, had felt its dirt in his hand as he played in the family garden, he had scratched his knees on its rocks... When he'd left, he hadn't imagined fifteen years would go by before he could breathe Edom's air again.

There he was though, all of this thanks to Jace, who had sent Magnus his way, Magnus who... Oh. Magnus who stood very still, his hands trembling by his sides as he did the same as Alec: contemplate Edom as it lay bare before his eyes.

Before he could truly realise what he was doing, Alec was moving, drawn to Magnus like a sunflower turning to keep staring at the sun as long as it could, and he stopped by his side.

"Are you okay?" he whispered, his voice soft, without looking at the young man for fear of pressuring him into talking, although Magnus might not want to confide in him.

"Y... yeah," the other answered, clearing his throat to hide the roughness of his voice, "I just..."

He turned his head to the side then, looking at Alec, who had no other choice than to look back, taking in the young man's gorgeous face and glistening cheeks. Oh no. No, no, no, Alec panicked, Magnus... Magnus was crying. Shit.

"Hey..." he murmured helplessly, softly, not knowing what else to say, not sure there was anything to do anyway, "It's all good..."

"I just..." Magnus repeated, smiling through his tears with an embarrassed chuckle, "It's stupid, because we simply went between the mountains and nothing is really different but... For the first time in my life, I feel free."

"That's not stupid," Alec whispered, his hands hitching to just hold Magnus and bring him the comfort no one had ever given him, "I understand."

"Do... do you?"

"Maybe not like you," Alec amended, although Magnus' question had not been accusing him of false sympathy, "but I used to live here. I... kinda missed it."

Understatement of the century. Still, Alec didn't want to make this moment about him.

"You did?" Magnus echoed his words, surprise in his voice as he rubbed at his eyes.

"Yes," Alec confirmed. "I... I belong here."

"I want to belong too," Magnus said, so softly that Alec wasn't sure this comment was meant for him.

He was fidgeting with the ring Alec had noticed around his finger before and when the young man caught him looking, he showed the jewel to him.

"A," Magnus whispered with a sniffle, tracing the outlines of the engraved letter with a finger, while Alec did the same with his eyes. "I never thought much about it but... Do you think it could stand for Asmodeus? Be his ring?"

"I don't know," he answered truthfully, as he didn't want to raise Magnus' hopes up in vain. "I can't remember Asmodeus wearing rings..."

Alec realised his mistake too late, when Magnus' curious eyes settled on his face.

"Remember?" he pointed out, "You... you know Asmodeus?"

"I... saw him once or twice, a long time ago," he grunted, avoiding details, blaming himself for his misstep - so much for telling Underhill that Magnus didn't have to know! "Soon enough, you'll see him too."

Magnus nodded sadly, biting his lip as he stared back at his ring, and Alec felt his heart break in two. He just wanted to wipe that sorrow off his face, to promise him that everything would be alright, that he would find what he was looking for, that he'd find _himself_.

"I just want to belong," Magnus whispered again, fresh tears spilling over the corners of his eyelids. "I want to be someone..."

It was too much, so Alec gave in. He moved slowly, unsure that he would be welcome, but Magnus' wide eyes held no fear or rejection, so he wrapped his arms around the younger man, one around his back, the other around his shoulders, and he pulled him in. It should have been awkward, perhaps, but it wasn't. Magnus lost his breath for a few precious seconds at the unexpected embrace, and Alec could feel their heartbeats echo one another as he hugged him tight, unwilling to let go.

"You will," he said in his ear, "You _are_."

Magnus let out a small sob before his own arms closed around his waist, and Alec knew he was lost.

  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oooooh... Hope you enjoyed this chapter ;) Thank you for reading!


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm back! On the menu today: nightmares, comfort, feelings and lobster. Enjoy! ;)

  


Magnus was running in the snow, his lungs burning as he put as much distance as he could between the car and him. He was scared. Scared of being too slow, of getting caught, of being hurt. He couldn't hear a sound beside his own footsteps, crushing the white snow, but he wasn't sure that he wasn't followed. If that man got a hold of him again... Who knew what he would do to him?

He knew something had happened to lead him there, in the snow in the middle of nowhere, but he couldn't remember what and every time he tried to focus in order to break the thick fog around his brain, the memories eluded him, slipping through his fingers like water. Someone had grabbed him, that much he knew... And now he was running, away from doom, away from... Whom? What? A man, yes, he knew that. The rest... was a blur. Weren't there two men?

He didn't remember. Couldn't. There was just this horrible feeling, this fear, the panic, the need to cry for his father and for his mother but... Where were they? _Who_ were they? Why had they left him all alone?

_Magnus!_

The voice calling... He knew the man behind it, although he wasn't there with him, because he was alone, had always been, would always be.

_Magnus, wake up!_

Why? He wasn't asleep. How could he, when he was still running through the snow in spite of his fatigue, exhaustion slowly taking over and burning along his legs... He was _going_ to fall asleep, though. Alone, in the cold, and he would never...

"Wake up!"

Magnus started awake with a cry when someone grabbed his shoulders and shook him none too gently. He gasped as his eyes shot open and then, for a split second, the blurry image of a man he didn't know was superposed to the face of the actual man in front of him, until Magnus blinked and it was gone, leaving only the concerned frown of...

"Alexander?" he croaked out.

"Are you okay?" the young man asked, his hands still clutching onto Magnus' shoulders, almost painfully so.

"Wh... Yeah," he stammered, looking around for any kind of reason that would explain Alec's obvious trouble - there was none, Chairman Meow's eyes were glowing in the dark and that was it. "Are _you_ okay?"

"You were screaming in your sleep," Isabelle told him when her brother didn't say anything, apparently shocked to have the question returned to him when he hadn't been the one thrashing on the backseat, "You scared us both."

Magnus realised then that they were stopped on the side of the road, in the car Underhill had given them after they'd crossed the border. _Rental_ , he'd assured, unprompted, to Magnus who'd glanced suspiciously at the siblings: had they mentioned to their friend his unease at travelling in a stolen vehicle?

"I... I was screaming?" he repeated weakly, standing a bit straighter, regretting it as soon as it made Alec let go of him. "I don't remember."

He did remember running in the snow though, away from an undetermined threat, and he knew he had been scared of it. There had been the indistinct face, too... That of a man in his late thirties, with a strange tattoo on his neck. It didn't mean anything to him but surely he hadn't imagined it: had he seen the man or the mark before? He didn't think so. Or had he just forgotten about it, along with everything else from his past?

"Did you see something?" Isabelle asked, as if she'd read his mind. "Memories, maybe?"

"I... I'm not sure," he slowly answered, trying to _think_ , to understand his dream.

He didn't want to say yes too fast, for perhaps it was nothing more than a normal nightmare. Just because he'd finally gotten to Edom didn't mean that his memories would suddenly and magically come back to him through upsetting dreams, that would be too good to be true.

"It was just a dream, I guess," he eventually said, if only to reassure the siblings, "and I'm fine."

"Good to go, then?" Izzy asked, ready to start on the engine and hit the road again.

Magnus nodded, realising a bit late that his hands were shaking in the aftermath of that... nightmare, he guessed. He quickly hid them between his knees, pretending to stretch his stiff back and roll his shoulders back. Isabelle didn't see it, as she was sitting behind the wheel, but Alec's watchful eyes, however, didn't fail at noticing that detail.

"You're not fine," he pointed out in a whisper that was drowned in the sound of the car.

"Because I'm tired and I won't be able to go back to sleep," Magnus quickly lied, "I don't want to have nightmares again..."

Nightmare, dream, whatever. The vision, for lack of a better word, had been scary and he really hoped it was a regular nightmare instead of a shattered piece of memory; if it was... What the hell had happened to him to make him feel so scared?

"You're too tense," Alec declared and really, Magnus couldn't deny it.

"What are you going to do about it?" the younger man grumbled, more in a dismissive way than a challenging one and still, Alec's eyes started to shine as if he'd just dared him to do something reckless.

Next thing Magnus knew, Alec's hands were on his shoulders again, except that this time they didn't shake him but gently pulled him down, until the young man was lying with his head in Alec's lap. It didn't help to ease the tension in his body, for he stayed still, almost afraid to breathe, not knowing how to interpret this new, unexpected development. Based on the tension he could feel in the thigh beneath his head, it seemed that Alexander was a bit surprised by his own spontaneous decision as well.

Faced with such awkwardness, of course Magnus chose to react with bravado instead of obvious confusion, refusing to linger on Alexander's sweet and intimate move that had drastically sped up his heartbeat.

"Is that supposed to protect me from nightmares?" he asked in a groan, pretending to be annoyed rather than affected by the close-to-none distance now remaining between the two of them.

"Won't know if you don't try," Alec answered softly.

What could Magnus say to that? Nothing. It was true... It felt strange to be there, his head on Alec's knees, and still not be... more than what they were. Speaking of which, what were they? They had been toeing the line between friends and enemies, however strong a word it could be, for days, although they hadn't argued in a while. They were... close. Steadily heading for _closer_.

How much closer, though? Magnus couldn't lie, the mere thought of the two of them becoming something else, something _more_ , was exciting. Scary, too, because what would happen to them, what could they be once out of this car, at the end of the road, when it was settled whether Magnus was Asmodeus' son or not? Either they stayed together or they didn't and Magnus didn't know what he wanted. Independency. _Trust no one but yourself_. Affection, too. He craved it. How many nights had he spent in his shitty apartment, alone and curled around his pillow on his couch, wishing he had someone who would wrap their arms around him, although unwilling to give too much importance to someone who would inevitably leave anyway? Because they all would, wouldn't they?

Camille had, unable to handle someone who didn't know who he was and with abandonment issues as big as his. That, and she was a damn cheater - and that part hadn't been Magnus' fault. Needless to say, Camille leaving him hadn't really improved his ability to trust a partner. But... What about Alexander? Could he trust him? Yes, screamed a part of his head, as well as his heart: hadn't he fought for him, got wounded for him? Magnus knew that he could trust the older man with his life and yet, the other part of his mind was telling him to remain cautious, not to fall too fast and too hard for his own sake. He didn't _know_ Alexander. He kept too many secrets for that. If he could trust Alec with his life, maybe he couldn't when it came to his heart.

Still, Magnus mused as Alec started to gently run his long fingers through his hair - a new but welcome surprise, although one more that they didn't talk about, for they apparently preferred to let things happen and just not discuss them - this felt nice. The three of them were silent in the car, Alec and he physically closer than ever, and Magnus found himself wishing this would never end. He would have loved to go back to sleep like this but the impending nightmares didn't really let him. Magnus didn't want to dream of all that snow again.

"Who am I, Alexander?" he whispered in the silence before he could help himself, his voice sounding sadder than intended. "The closer we get to Asmodeus, the more scared I become."

"Why?" Alec gently questioned, his ministrations in his hair never slowing down.

"Why am I scared?" Magnus clarified. "Because if... if the King doesn't think I'm his son... I might never find out who I am for sure."

"But you'll still be you," Isabelle interfered, her voice clear and comforting. "That matters the most. You are a good man and who your parents are won't change that, whether they're royalty or not. You'll still be the Magnus we learned to know."

He noticed that Isabelle was looking in the rear-view mirror as she spoke, although she couldn't see him since he was lying down and not at all visible. When he craned his neck and looked up though, he realised that her stare had not been meant for him but for Alec, who glared at the rear-view mirror for a solid minute before he suddenly averted his eyes and huffed.

Magnus frowned, feeling like there had been some silent, subliminal exchange between the siblings that he had not been privy to, the meaning of it slipping through his fingers as he tried to grasp it, to no avail. More secrets... How long would they ignore his wish of knowing them, of being Alec's and Izzy's equal?

He could have asked, requested answers, but then he would have had to sit up and sound a bit demanding - why would he do that when he could stay down and let Alec's hand roam through his hair?

Eventually, Magnus fell asleep again and this time, he didn't dream. However, he wouldn't let Alec feel proud of himself for that fact come morning.

  


  


If Magnus had thought that they would finish their trip to Erchomai City in this new car, he was sorely mistaken, as it turned out when the siblings parked next to a hundred other vehicles in front of a building bearing a sign that Magnus read with wide eyes. _Edom ferry company_.

The pale sun that had shyly pierced through the clouds, heavy with not-yet unleashed snow, was already retreating, bathing the sky in pinkish hues reflected on the river Adorn. They'd driven for a good part of the morning through woods, until the scenery had changed and given way to flat roads with only too little verdure on the sides, revealing the large river that they'd followed, until they'd reached this small city and the business selling tickets for the ferries.

"A boat?" Magnus said in disbelief as he slowly unbuckled his seatbelt. "I thought we were going to Erchomai City?"

The siblings knew as well as he did that the Adorn didn't go through the capital but swerved before reaching the suburbs, favouring other and smaller towns to stream through. Alec nodded.

"We're going there, ultimately," he explained. "We'll have to meet with Lilith before we're granted audience with Asmodeus and sadly, his sister doesn't live in Erchomai City."

"She prefers quieter places to raise Jonathan," Izzy added, "The palace swarms with people all day long, tourists and dignitaries alike, and she doesn't deem it safe anymore."

"What about security details?" Magnus enquired. "Surely the royal family is well guarded?"

The siblings shared a look of unease that the younger man didn't quite understand, until Alec spoke, sounding a bit... tense. Angry, even, although not at Magnus.

"Asmodeus thought so too before his son was kidnapped. Lilith wants Jonathan away from potential sources of trouble, meaning the King and his current heir, who are the first targets on the antiroyalists' list... Among others."

Alec cut the discussion short by walking out of the car first, to which Izzy reacted by rolling her eyes, apparently as annoyed with her brother's tendency to say or do something dramatic and leave it at that as Magnus was. Still, they followed him out of the car, grabbed their belongings as well as Chairman Meow, and they went inside the building to buy their tickets for the ferry that would leave next.

It turned out that they would have to delay their departure: the next ferry didn't leave before two long hours. Izzy and Magnus settled down on the benches provided for the dozens of people who actually preferred pacing up and down a large waiting room, while Alec put on his grumpy-slash-scary face and crossed his arms against his chest, glaring around and dissuading anyone from approaching his companions, like a perfect bodyguard.

After days of driving and moving forward, getting closer to their ultimate goal, staying put with nothing to do sounded like torture, although one of them at least seemed content to stay there and not move around anymore: Chairman Meow. To be honest, Magnus felt a little guilty to make his cat go through this journey with him, even though he would have fared far worse if he'd stayed alone in his apartment...

Yet, taking Chairman Meow on a train, then making him stay in the car for days on end and now, taking the boat with him didn't sound like the most pleasant experience a cat could endure. Poor thing. Magnus couldn't wait to finally find his place in the world and allow his tiny cat the rest he deserved, preferably in a bundle of warm and comfortable blankets. Not that his arms - or Alec's chest, apparently, although Magnus could neither deny nor confirm that fact - weren't a snug nest... Maybe he worried too much, for Chairman Meow was currently dozing off on Izzy's knees, his eyes slowly closing as he kneaded at her pants while her left hand threaded through his fur. Based on his cat's blissful expression, it felt like heaven on earth.

Magnus suddenly thought back to the way he had laid his head on Alec's knees while the older man ran his hand through his own hair and... Shit, he'd probably looked as ecstatic as Chairman Meow did, once the initial shock had subdued. His cat and he were total suckers for the siblings' attention, weren't they? Crap.

"Teach me something," Magnus blurted out, addressing Isabelle since he would have been totally incapable of looking at Alec without blushing.

"Hm?"

Pulled from her reverie, staring down at Chairman Meow without actually seeing him, Izzy glanced at Magnus and eventually understood what he meant.

"Asmodeus doesn't like coffee," she answered, chuckling afterwards, as if she'd realised she'd told him the first thing that came to mind, which held little interest. "He's a tea addict, I'd say."

"Really?" Magnus deadpanned, making her laugh louder.

He didn't really care what hot beverage Asmodeus liked better... However, the unimportant information revealed something that mattered a lot more: Magnus hadn't really believed Alexander when the older man had told him that he'd seen Asmodeus before but didn't know him. Izzy's anecdote only strengthened his suspicion: who would know what the King liked to drink, except for someone who personally knew him and had spent time by his side?

It brought a more pressing question: why would the siblings purposefully lie to him? He wanted to ask and find out the truth just as much as he feared the actual answer: what if they'd deceived him from the start? No, no, that wasn't possible. They hadn't lied about that... Bringing Asmodeus his son back truly mattered to Alec and Izzy had shared a few of her private thoughts with him. He trusted Isabelle and Alexander.

Perhaps they had a good reason to hide some things... He would be curious to know which one but if he pried and they got angry, left him right there, what good would that do him? Objectively, Magnus didn't imagine they would do something of the like but the fear that gripped him at the thought of being left alone again was threatening to overwhelm him.

"I can teach you something useful," Isabelle said then, unaware of the thoughts plaguing his brain. "A hand-kiss."

Magnus stared at her, his eyebrows furrowing in confusion, although he was glad for the distraction.

"What's so special about kissing someone's hand?"

"That's no simple kiss!" she protested. "It's a tradition for members of royal families to learn how to do it properly and use it as a sign of respect to some dignitaries. You _have_ to learn it too!"

Magnus wasn't sure that it was absolutely necessary but he welcomed this new task to focus on and he swiftly brought Isabelle's hand to his lips when she offered it to him.

"Not bad," she commented with a snort, "if you're trying to create a diplomatic incident."

"I'm sorry?" Magnus uttered, his eyes widening, "What did I do wrong?"

"First of all, you have to lean down," Izzy explained with a grin, obviously taking great pleasure in watching Magnus struggle with what he'd implied was easy to practice. "Never lift the woman's hand, that's not proper. Second, you can't actually put your mouth to my hand, because..."

She trailed off, looking expectantly at him, but Magnus was at a loss for words.

"Because you didn't say I could?" he suggested.

"No," Isabelle answered, laughing again. "As much as oral consent is important in intimate situations, there's no need for it here: it's always the lady who offers her hand, not the man who takes it, so... Technically, you can't do it if the woman doesn't want to as well. So, any other idea?"

"None," Magnus admitted, contrite.

He was surprised when Alexander answered the question himself, for Magnus had thought that he hadn't focused on their antics, too busy making sure no one approached them with ill intentions.

"You can't actually kiss her hand because you're not married," Alec grunted, his dark eyes piercing through Magnus' and straight to his soul. "You're supposed to barely brush your lips against the back of her hand. _Barely_."

The way he repeated it made it sound like it was of the utmost importance that Magnus respected the custom and really embraced the centuries-old tradition. He thought Alec sounded a bit threatening as well though - because he didn't want Izzy's hand anywhere near Magnus' mouth or because he'd preferred to have his own hand kissed, the young man wondered but didn't ask, for fear of wanting something he wasn't sure he could have. He didn't think Alexander would have appreciated the question anyway.

"Like this?" he suggested, focusing back on his mission and slightly bending down to bring his lips very close to the back of Isabelle's hand, all the while making sure that he wasn't committing another sacrilege.

"Better," she said with a smile when Magnus straightened.

Alec averted his gaze when Magnus looked at him with a cheeky grin, which didn't keep him from noticing his clenched jaw and twitching fingers. Goodness, he was a masochist, and an indecisive, contradictory one at that. Magnus didn't want Alec to become indispensable in his life and still, the thought of him being jealous filled him with awe and delight.

In the end, he was glad when a disembodied and cold voice announced through the speakers that the ferry had arrived and that they could get on its board. He didn't mention that Alec looked a bit too tense as they did and found their cabin - only one for the three of them, like their previous installations at the inn, this time with twin bunk beds - and he pretended not to hear his hushed whispers as he told his sister that he was almost sure they were being followed.

Memories of the train and the fight that had come down in the middle of the carriages assaulted his mind and Magnus tried to calm his heartbeat that had quickened at the thought of it happening again. He... He wasn't scared for his own safety. He knew that Izzy and Alec would protect him with their life... And _that_ scared him. He didn't want any of them to get hurt because of him - Alexander had already done that. Once was more than enough.

He was surprised when neither of the siblings forbid him to get out and explore the ferry, which they did together as the boat left port. Magnus felt like he was confirmed royalty already, surrounded by his bodyguards... Maybe, he guessed, Alec had realised that he was wrong, that no one had followed them or would ambush them. He certainly hoped for that, rather than the possibility of the siblings downplaying their alertness to serve as bait and catch the bad guy before he tried to hurt any of them. Speaking of which, he still wasn't sure whether he was the intended target or Alec and Izzy...

However, their tour around the ship went well and neither of the siblings seemed too concerned about a surprise attack, so Magnus slowly relaxed. If his two companions had noticed the tension in the line of his shoulders, they didn't mention it, maybe not to stress him out even more, and Alec soon recommended they ate and enjoyed a good night of sleep in the beds of their cabin afterwards. Magnus couldn't agree more with that plan.

"Not sure I'll eat anything," Isabelle grumbled.

Only then did the young man realise how ghostly she looked, growing a whiter shade of pale every time the ferry rocked.

"Seasick?" Magnus guessed.

"Fuck yeah," she answered with a brave but miserable smile, "Always have been, as soon as I set foot on a boat. We're not even at sea..."

"You still need to eat to keep your strength," Alexander said, glancing around to follow the arrows pointing in the direction of the restaurant.

"If I even manage to hold my dinner," she shot back with a roll of her eyes, "which is far from certain..."

At least Magnus and Alexander were both happy at the prospect of a warm dinner to fill their stomach, since their last proper meal went back a while: breakfast at the inn, three days ago. No one had thought judicious to warn Magnus that he would have to run on biscuits and sandwiches for so long... So he sat at the restaurant feeling hyped up and ready to eat more than he should, just to keep the taste of actual food in his mouth for as long as he could, but he felt himself deflate a little when the waiter handed them the menus. Everything sounded delicious, from the most classic dish to the most elaborate one and... Magnus just didn't know what to order and said so to the siblings.

"Close your eyes and pick randomly," Isabelle suggested with a shrug.

"Try the lobster," Alec added, smiling.

"Alec..." Isabelle groaned, for a reason Magnus wasn't sure to understand.

"I never tried lobster before," he admitted, glancing at the menu that indicated the lobster was served whole. "I don't know how to eat that, what with the tiny fork and all."

"All the more reason to try it now," Alec reasoned, "so that you are actually able to deal with lobster... later. Might come in handy."

Magnus blinked as he realised what Alexander meant: did he really think that he had a chance of being accepted as Asmodeus' son? Of attending dinner at the palace or in fancy restaurants with the King, with his _may-be-father_ , and getting to eat next to important people who would judge him based on his manner of handling a lobster? As ominous as that last part sounded, he wanted it, all of it, judgement and all, because then he would belong.

"Lobster it is," he decided.

He promptly regretted it when the waiter came back a bit later in the evening with their meals and their drinks, and Izzy quickly hid her laughter upon seeing his expression by nearly drowning herself in her glass of Coke. Not cool.

"What do I do?" he whimpered at the sight of the bright red beast in his plate and the tools that came with it, which he had no idea how to use.

He shouldn't have listened to Alec. The lobster would come out of this fight on top, Magnus was sure of it... Until Alexander's chair scraped along the floor as he came closer to the younger man in order to show him the pick next to his plate.

"With this," he explained, "you can eat the flesh. You have to crack the shell open first, though. The best way to start is to twist off the claws and then..."

"Wait, wait, stop," Magnus pleaded, "One step at a time or I'll be completely lost. So... Claws?"

Under Alec's careful supervision, Magnus threw himself into the great adventure eating lobster turned out to be. Eager to get over the hardest part in one go so that he could enjoy his dinner without always interrupting himself to dismantle more parts of the lobster, Magnus battled with the pick and the cracker, getting juices everywhere and sending bits of meat flying around.

"Eating lobster is supposed to be something grand," Alec pointed out, "not...barbaric."

"Well, I'm sorry," Magnus grumbled, "First times can be clumsy, okay?"

He was deeply satisfied to hear Izzy snort and see Alec's cheeks colour at his innuendo, although he chided himself right after: thinking of such situations while looking at Alexander was a bad idea for his own sanity.

Wet fingers, used lemony hand wipes and pieces of broken shell scattered around the plate later, Magnus finally got to taste his first bite of lobster and...

"I... don't like it," he said with a frown, barely managing to swallow the first and only mouthful he intended to take. "This is disgusting."

His eyes widened in confusion when Alec started laughing, making Izzy shake her head as if she couldn't believe her brother's antics - but had expected those.

"I was pretty sure you wouldn't," he explained between giggles. "At least, now you know how to do it. I _do_ like lobster though, so... Want to switch?"

He pointed at his own plate of spaghetti, that looked suspiciously full, almost as if Alec hadn't eaten anything while the younger man was busy fighting the lobster and... Oh. The cheeky bastard. He had known! He had known that Magnus wouldn't like it and would want to eat something else... Way to go, letting him do all the hard work so Alec could enjoy a ready-to-eat lobster without getting his hands dirty.

"I hate you," Magnus grumbled, although he and his loud stomach gratefully accepted the plate of spaghetti.

"No you don't," Alec snorted, taking the lobster, their fingers brushing as they switched meals.

There was a beat of silence and then...

"No," Magnus repeated, slow and soft, before he could think better of it, "I don't."

  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Adorn is actually a river from Middle Earth invented by Tolkien. I'm only borrowing it :) Thank you for your interest in this story, every kudo/bookmark/subscriber it gets makes me really happy. Thanks to all of you for your support!


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone! Sorry for the delay in this chapter, I was doubting myself a bit with this story and then I wrote another little oneshot and it made me late... I hope you'll enjoy this new chapter though!

  


"How long are we staying on this ferry?" Magnus asked in the morning, as he sat in front of a large bowl of cereals drowning in milk and a glass of grapefruit juice. Izzy mumbled something that Alec couldn't fully understand and he pushed toward her some water and pills, that she gulped down greedily. She hadn't spent a good night. Standing on this boat was hard enough already for his sister but lying down was an absolute horror, for every move of the ferry, as gentle as the stream of the Adorn was, made her gag.

"We get off tomorrow morning," Alec eventually answered, squeezing Isabelle's shoulder in support.

"What are we going to do for the next twenty-four hours, then?" Magnus asked again, sounding a bit excited.

Alec wouldn't lie, he felt the same kind of enthusiasm, although he attempted to hide it: they'd been stuck in a car for too long and being able to walk around while someone else handled the ferry and made them travel from point A to B was a nice and welcome change. Besides, there were plenty of activities to partake in on the ferry, as well as dens of gourmet temptations: other than the restaurant, several boutiques sold fancy sandwiches and salads with vegetarian and vegan alternatives, between a narrow winery and a cosy tearoom where you could also get ice-cream - in the middle of this cold winter, Alec would pass.

There were a few clothes and shoes stores as well, not to mention the shops that offered a wide assortment of trinkets as keepsakes from Edom, like miniatures from Erchomai Palace. Other than the shopping, the ferry enabled its passengers to have fun at an arcade, or try themselves at bowling, table tennis and billiards.

"I think I'll go back to bed," Izzy grumbled, holding her head between her hands. "You two lovebirds go have fun without me."

Alec didn't blink, didn't clasp his hand over his sister's mouth, and he didn't glare at her - even though she would have deserved it for her insinuations - but only because she hadn't slept and he could understand her frustration, although he wished she'd minded her phrasing a bit more. Magnus, however, didn't remain impassive: he promptly choked on his sip of juice, that went up through his nose before he started to cough.

"Right," Alec grumbled, pretending that he hadn't noticed or understood Izzy's comment while he rubbed Magnus' back - which didn't help him, actually. "Go take a nap."

"I will," Isabelle answered with a grin, proud of herself. "Take care of Magnus for me."

"I can handle myself," Magnus groaned, hoping there wasn't any innuendo in her previous sentence, "unless there's something you're not telling me? Has someone followed us onboard like you suspected yesterday?"

"You heard?" Izzy asked back, looking a bit contrite. "We didn't mean to worry you."

"You didn't," Magnus quickly answered - an obvious lie to Alec, for he seemed unwilling to make Isabelle feel bad when he could perfectly understand the reason behind the siblings' silence.

Alec knew just how many things his sister and he kept hidden from Magnus, including all possibilities of trouble coming their way... Magnus wasn't an idiot though, he'd realised from day one, with that madman in the train, that this journey was a risky enterprise. He also knew why Izzy and Alec would conveniently _forget_ to tell him there was a possibility of getting into some bad situation.

As Isabelle had explained, they hadn't wanted him to worry about a potential opponent and anyway, if they had been tailed, what would Magnus have done about it? He didn't have a gun or a knife, he wasn't a skilled combatant and he would be the last one they'd allowed to jump in a fight. They had to protect him, even if it meant hiding some truths.

"So..." Izzy said in a sing-song voice, "Since there's no bad guy looking for us right now, I'll leave you to your fun. See you later!"

She stood up, staggering a bit as a new wave of nausea assaulted her, and she left the two men in front of their breakfast. Alec poked his yoghurt with his spoon and tried not to pay too much attention to the awkward silence that had settled between them, as ideas of what _fun_ with Magnus could entail flooded his mind. He banished them just as quickly as they had attacked him: it was no use thinking about _what if's_ when he had come to the conclusion that nothing would ever be possible between them.

If it turned out that Magnus was royalty, they would be separated by their respective circles: princes didn't belong around the likes of Alec, no matter who his parents were... _Especially_ considering who they were, actually. If Magnus wasn't Asmodeus' son though, fate wouldn't tie them together either. Magnus would be disappointed and sad, distraught maybe, and Alec wasn't sure that he would want to keep him around, not when he was a reminder of these few days when Magnus thought he could have it all.

Alec focused on his yoghurt as a deep ache captured his heart, squeezing the oxygen out of his chest: for a short second, he'd imagined going back to a life without Magnus in it, an existence void of his snarky comments, huffs of annoyance and coos at Chairman Meow. He wanted this one good thing to stay in his life. Was that too much to ask for?

"You're certain we're not being followed, right?" Magnus suddenly asked, breaking the uncomfortable silence.

"Did you notice something?" Alec immediately questioned, for fear of having missed a detail of importance.

"N... No," Magnus answered, "I'm just wondering. You did seem rather worried yesterday."

"I was," he admitted, since it would be useless to deny it, "That's why I stood guard outside the cabin during the night."

"You did what?!" the younger male exclaimed with a jerk that sent the cereals on his spoon back into his bowl. "Alexander... Did you even sleep?"

"Two hours," he mumbled, aware that Magnus wouldn't like such an answer.

Indeed.

"What?! Alec, you need to rest too!" he exclaimed. "If you're exhausted, you can't defend yourself! Besides, we'd locked the door yesterday, nothing could have happened!"

"You don't know that," Alec protested with a glare.

He took Magnus' protection seriously, even if the man himself didn't understand how much it was needed. He didn't know exhaustion and he wouldn't fail Magnus if it came down to an attack, for his body reacted of its own, muscular memory falling into place and making him move, sometimes before his brain could even connect the dots.

"Well, did something happen overnight?" Magnus shot back with a glare as intense as Alec's, crossing his arms against his chest in a signature gesture that the older man was starting to know a bit too well: Magnus was certain to be right in this conversation.

"No but it could ha..."

"But it didn't," Magnus interrupted him, "so you spent the whole night awake in the hallway, getting more and more tired I bet, and if there _had_ been someone spying on you and waiting for you to show some weakness, they would have jumped you, hurt you or killed you. You can't put yourself in danger like that, Alexander."

While it had squeezed painfully before, Alec's heart now fluttered with misplaced happiness and satisfaction at hearing the concern in Magnus' voice. He cared. Not just because Alec was protecting him and ensuring him a safe travel until he came face to face with Asmodeus, no, but he cared for _him_ , as his own person. In his eagerness not to let Magnus get too concerned for him though, Alec blurted out:

"They wouldn't have done me much harm, I'm not the one they're most interes..."

He shut up abruptly at his mistake, paling as he realised what he was saying, how much more it would actually worry Magnus, and...

"I suppose they wouldn't be interested in Izzy either?" Magnus said quietly, his voice and the raised line of his shoulders betraying how tense he was. "After what happened in the train, Isabelle told me your family had enemies and that the guy was most likely after you, not me. Was that a lie? Another one, to protect me?"

Alec shook his head, blaming himself for his carelessness that put him in dangerous waters. Thankfully, Izzy hadn't really been lying - not on that point, at least - but she had indeed forgotten to give the younger man a few details.

"We do have enemies..." he explained softly, almost scared to spook Magnus with too gauche a word, "What Izzy and I are trying to do isn't exactly a secret either..."

When Magnus looked at him blankly, Alec let out a weak chuckle.

"Bringing Asmodeus his son has been on our mind for a while," he explained, praying that Magnus wouldn't ask why it mattered so much - he couldn't tell him, not yet. "There are people, however... who aren't too keen on seeing the King reunite with his rightful heir. So they're keeping an eye on us, to check on our progress."

"Now that I'm with you," Magnus said, sounding too bitter for Alec not to notice, "I guess they've caught on the fact that I must be the make-believe prince."

"Potential prince," the older man corrected with a wince. "All we need is Asmodeus' confirmation."

"Right," Magnus groaned.

There was a short moment of silence but Alec didn't dare move and resume eating his yoghurt, for he could tell that Magnus wasn't done, gathering his thoughts to express what was, quite predictably, self-doubt. Alec was starting to know him well... and he was right.

"What if I never recover my memories?" Magnus eventually asked. "How could a father accept a son who doesn't remember him?"

Alec stared at the table for a while, quiet. He had no certain answer for Magnus, nor the one he actually wanted to hear: he couldn't promise that everything would be alright. He had put his neck on the line enough as it was, telling Magnus that he could very well be Asmodeus' son when in fact, nothing proved it. Resemblance and adopted knowledge or manners didn't make an irrefutable proof.

"I think..." he started, slowly, "that the King doesn't expect to find his son just like he was when they were separated. He probably knows... I mean, I hope he does, that something must have happened to him after he was kidnapped. Why else wouldn't he have tried to contact Asmodeus or go back to him, before the border was closed? Lost memories could be a reason for it..."

"Yeah..." Magnus sighed, putting his spoon down on the table and looking at his sad face reflected in it. "I guess I'll make new memories with him, if this ends well for me..."

"You are already making new memories with Izzy and me," Alec reminded him, "It's not so bad, is it?"

Alec bit his lip, hoping that he didn't sound too eager nor desperate to be a part of these memories, even though he... Well, he kind of was, wasn't he? He was impossibly relieved when Magnus nodded with a sweet smile and Alec had to fight the urge to close his eyes in order to savour this instant better, wishing he was able to brand that shy grin onto his eyelids so that he would see it every time he blinked.

Knowing that his time spent around Magnus was limited filled him with bitter regrets and the desire to be remembered as well, although he hoped the younger man wouldn't hate their shared memories once it was all done... Maybe, if he was lucky, Magnus would understand.

"Anyway," Magnus cleared his throat, "don't change the topic. We were talking about you being stubborn and reckless by keeping guard. This is not happening again, tonight you'll be sleeping _and_ staying in our cabin, even if I have to tie you up to the bed for that!"

  


  


"Kinky," Isabelle commented as soon as Alec told her about their morning conversation.

She was sitting on her bed, one of the two on the bottom in case she needed quick access to the bathroom, while Alec was on his own mattress. He had kind of left no choice for Magnus but to take the top bunk, although he had refrained from explaining why. If the younger man was mad already because he'd stood guard overnight, what would it be if he heard that he was on top so that Alec and Izzy would be the first ones to face an attacker?

"Can you not?" Alec groaned.

"Don't tell me you didn't think about him tying you up in bed," Izzy snorted, before she took a sip of the chamomile tea her brother had brought her back - he really shouldn't have bothered if she was going to treat him like that. How unfair!

"I didn't," Alec protested.

He was telling her the truth, not that she would believe him anyway. Alec knew how impossible Magnus and he were so since he was already trying not to think about the younger man's lips and how much he wanted to kiss him... He was definitely not thinking about more. What would daydreaming give him, except for an unhealthy dose of frustration and bitterness?

"Well," Izzy said with a smile, "at least he cares about you."

She jerked her head toward the bathroom where Magnus had disappeared to let his pillow case soak in the sink, on which Chairman Meow had peed while they were exploring the ferry. Izzy hadn't seen him, for she'd been sleeping, but the pungent smell had betrayed the cat's shenanigan right away. Magnus insisted it was Alec's fault, for he hadn't kept any lobster leftovers for Chairman Meow. Alec was scandalised.

"He's not supposed to," the young man grumbled, averting his eyes from Isabelle's intense stare.

"Don't tell me you miss your endless arguing," she shot back, "because I won't believe you. Magnus likes you and you do too, so I'd say it's a good thing."

"Where do you see any good coming from this?" Alec asked, incredulous, trying to keep his voice at a low volume despite his surprise. "He doesn't know about us, about our parents or..."

"Good think he likes you and not our parents, then," Isabelle snorted - dreadfully annoying, since she was right. "I think you should be honest with him."

Alec let out a bitter, joyless laugh. Revealing their reasons for doing this, revealing his family's responsibility in the disaster from fifteen years ago? As if this could go well... He knew that his sister was right of course, they would have to talk about it with Magnus eventually, but... She didn't risk to get her heart broken, while the two men did, and Alec was a coward. What he had, right now, with the younger man... It was good.

Not enough and far from perfect but Alec wouldn't go asking for more, not when it couldn't last anyway, not when Magnus would inevitably be angry - and rightfully so - for all their lies. He wouldn't jeopardise that by telling him the truth too soon either. Even so, what could he say?

"And tell him what?" Alec voiced his thoughts in a groan, eager to have his sister's opinion on the situation, although he doubted she would give him anything comforting. " _Sorry to disappoint, we helped you because this could get us thousands of dollars_... I'm not sure he'll appreciate it."

"He should hear the truth from you," Isabelle insisted. "Delaying it will only hurt him more."

"He won't simply get over it," Alec whispered miserably, realising how pitiful he sounded - he had dug his own grave by allowing himself to feel _things_ for Magnus, now he had to deal with it. "How could he forgive me?"

"Us," Isabelle specified. "We're in this together, even though we don't have the same interests. Don't doubt him: with time, he could forgive us."

"Forgive you for what?"

Alec jumped in fright when Magnus' voice resounded in his back, coming from the bathroom. He hadn't heard the door open but... Shit, how much had he heard? Based on the frown of his eyebrows, that wasn't too deep but showed wonder, Alec tried to reassure himself: he hadn't opened that door too long ago, apparently... Maybe he hadn't heard anything important.

"For what we're about to do," Isabelle answered with a grin, which made Alec panic a little inside - surely she wasn't going to tell him everything without discussing the details of it with him first, right?

Magnus' eyes narrowed in suspicion and he glanced from one sibling to another, his whole body radiating wariness. Honestly, Alec would have acted in the same way, especially since he knew Izzy and had a long, enduring experience of how bad some of her ideas could be - not that his own were far better, on the contrary. After all, wasn't he letting himself fall for Magnus even though he knew just how bad this could get?

... Right, they were not discussing that specific matter.

Still, Alec shared a bit of Magnus' apprehension since he didn't know what to expect from his sister this time. However, in hindsight, he should have seen it coming when she announced grandly:

"On this fine afternoon, we shall teach you to dance!"

"Dance?" Magnus repeated with wide eyes. "Why?"

"To impress when you go to dinner with important people and because the hardest negotiations can be won if you seduce one of the aforementioned important people's daughter?"

"I... don't want to seduce the daughters of important people?" Magnus said a bit hesitantly, probably wondering if that was something that would be asked of him in the future.

"Good," Izzy answered with a grin and a wink she sent Alec's way.

Her brother only glared. She wasn't subtle. Alec knew it and Magnus too, based on the way he'd averted his eyes, his cheeks flushing - beautifully so, he might have added in his mind if he'd allowed himself to.

"Maybe you already dance though," Alec added thoughtfully, taking pleasure in watching Izzy frown as he tried to undermine her master plan. "Magnus might have no use for your knowledge."

A devilish gleam flashed in his sister's eyes and her smirk was no good news, although she didn't comment on his words and turned to Magnus instead.

"So," she said conversationally and without even looking at the young man anymore, catching Chairman Meow when the cat jumped in her lap, "do you dance?"

"I... can hold my own in a club, I guess," Magnus answered, "not that I've been to clubs much... Nor that it's the kind of dancing you're talking about."

Alec could still hear the hesitation in his voice as he spoke, not sure of what was going to happen to him if Izzy decided he absolutely needed some dance lessons.

"It's not," she confirmed. "What about waltz, though?"

"Heard about it, never done it," the young man summed up, his feet and the cat-patterned socks covering them suddenly catching all his attention as he realised what it meant: he wouldn't be able to skip these lessons.

"Perfect!" Izzy chirped, "Now is as good an opportunity as ever to teach you some moves!"

Alec expected to see her jump on her feet and then in Magnus' arms, except that a sudden feeling of impending doom invaded him when she settled more comfortably against the pillows of the bed. Good God. Cold sweat started to run down his back as he glanced at Magnus. Surely Isabelle didn't think...

"I'm still nauseous," Izzy whined, the traitor. "I'm afraid I'll only end up puking on your adorable socks if I try to dance with you, so... Alec will have to step in."

Oh no she didn't.

Magnus' head turned so fast with shock that he probably pulled something in his back and wouldn't that be convenient, to avoid that dreaded waltz? Not that Alec _didn't_ want to dance with Magnus but how... how could he keep acting professional and emotionally uninvolved when Izzy was throwing him under the bus like this? He'd convinced himself it was no use pursuing any kind of deeper relationship with the younger man so technically, he could do dancing and walk out of it unbothered.

Realism was deeply ingrained in his character though, so he could already picture his state of mind once it would be over: confused because of conflicted feelings, angry at the universe for Magnus' and his different situations, but also high on the emotions his dance with the young man would provide him with.

His impromptu dance partner seemed to share Alec's reservations for he was still looking at him, his eyes wide as he waited for him to say something, anything, that would or wouldn't get them out of Izzy's carefully planned trap.

"I'll... I'll probably step on your feet," Magnus stammered.

"I can handle it," Alec promised like an idiot, instead of jumping at the occasion to agree with him and decide that they couldn't dance together. "We don't have any music, though."

"We do," Isabelle immediately countered, taking a cell phone out of nowhere and shaking it in front of their desperate faces.

Alec squinted.

"We don't own phones," he pointed out.

"I borrowed it from another passenger," Izzy said with a shrug, although when Magnus mumbled that she'd _stolen_ it, she added, "I'll give it back later, I swear. Did you know they make them with music apps now? We should really invest in phones, Alec. I know it's important to remain untraceable but... Music!"

Alec rolled his eyes at his sister's antics as she acted like she'd never seen a cell phone in her life before. Unless she was just trying to make them relax and get Magnus and him in the right mood to dance? She didn't waste any more time though: she typed on the phone, selected a few options and then, the first notes of Shostakovich's Waltz no.2 rose in the cabin.

"Alec should lead first," Izzy suggested, "so you can watch the way he dances, Magnus. Then you switch and copy his moves."

"Right..." Magnus said, already focusing on Alec's feet, which were apparently easier to focus on than his face. "Should be a piece of cake."

Except that Magnus approached him like a spooked animal who feared to be eaten by a big bad wolf and in turn, Alec took his left hand rather clumsily, Magnus' own nervousness making him feel unsure of himself as he laid his other hand beneath the younger man's right shoulder blade.

"That won't do," Isabelle commented as she stared at them and the way they stood, the distance between them still too wide in her opinion. "You should be closer to each other. Waltz used to be considered indecent because of how close the dancers were, so give me some of that obscenity, boys!"

Magnus chuckled nervously but took one step forward at the same time as Alec did, which left them pressed flush against each other. Their eyes met as they searched for the other's gaze with twin glimmers of apology that they didn't voice out, too caught up in each other's blown pupils.

"Ready?" Alec whispered, internally freaking out at what was about to happen.

"As I'll ever be," Magnus whispered back.

His hand was slightly shaking on Alec's shoulder but when he started to lead, moving one foot then the other on the rhythm of the music, Magnus pushed his hesitation away: his hold tightened, his back straightened, and he followed Alec with clumsy but determined steps, as if he was ready to follow him to the end of the world.

  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The dance scene is to be continued :p Thank you for reading! If you're interested in reading the oneshot I wrote in-between chapters, [here](https://archiveofourown.org/works/16590710) it is! Until next time!


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone! Sorry for the delay on this chapter, my imagination went in overdrive and forced me to write something else :p I hope you'll enjoy this chapter that brings a new development to the boys' relationship!

  


Wasn't it funny, the way bodies sometimes worked without the brain's input? Magnus felt like his own had melted as soon as Alexander had curled their fingers together, surrendering control to his muscles as if it had been the easiest, most logical call to make. He couldn't even feel nervous anymore, although he'd been somewhat anxious when Izzy had suggested her brother and he tried themselves at waltzing.

Then Alexander had taken him in his arms, joining their fingers before he'd let his other hand rest lightly on Magnus' back, as if afraid to actually touch him... It had been innocent enough until Isabelle, the devil, had complained about their lack of indecency, that was apparently required to dance the waltz well.

What little puddle that was left of his brain had short-circuited when they'd finally embraced each other, their bodies touching, their eyes locking - Magnus had tried to avert his gaze but how could he, when Alexander's eyes held the power of a magnet, drawing him in, capturing him, never allowing him to go?

He lied when he told Alec that he was ready, for he felt like the moment they started dancing would change everything... in which ways, though? Magnus was all for good changes, ready to waltz with the older man, even ready and more than willing to give him the reins and let him lead... If he allowed himself to believe every romantic movie ever, he could even be ready for a kiss a the end of their dance, soft or hungry, it wouldn't matter, and his lips would push right back against Alexander's. He didn't even care if he sounded desperate for Alec's kiss. He wanted it but...

To be honest, he wasn't sure about the other man's desires and if he got mistaken, then the bad changes would come and Magnus wasn't ready for these. Alec was hard to read and what few indications he'd managed to get were even harder to decipher. Magnus was scared of misunderstanding his intentions, although... Well, there were clear signs of Alexander's attraction to him, weren't there?

Like the way he would glance at Magnus every so often... only to look away and glare at the ground afterwards. Maybe not clear signs then, but mixed signals for sure. Alec's reaction to Izzy's teasing at breakfast brought him to the same conclusion... Or rather, the man's lack of reaction: not a word, not a blush either, even though Alec's body language had revealed more to Magnus than a thousand words would have. If he was right in his observations, then the older man felt tempted but for some strange reason, refrained himself from approaching Magnus in any way that could pass as interested. Did he fear rejection? Had Magnus not been obvious enough regarding what he wanted from Alec?

His trail of thoughts shattered when Alexander started to move, bringing him along to a rhythm that Magnus didn't know, but he tightened his grip around Alec as if he never wanted to let go and he followed with determination... Except that his plan to learn and conquer both this new dance and Alec's heart was ruined as soon as he moved his feet.

Magnus was clumsy in his attempt at waltzing, which delayed every single one of his steps and, in turn, made him bump into Alec, who chuckled.

"Shut up," Magnus growled without real animosity, "I'm trying."

"You're doing amazing," Alec whispered with a smile.

It was infuriating that Magnus couldn't tell whether he was mocking him or praising him. Mixed signals, right?

He didn't answer, focusing on their feet to get better as quickly as he could - backward, to the side, forward, to the side, repeat. It was... relatively easy. Still, Magnus didn't seem to manage the steps at the same time as Alec and he stumbled once or twice, until Alexander's hand sneaked from his shoulder blade to his waist and wrapped him in a tighter embrace.

Surprised, Magnus looked up. Huge mistake, that he only understood when his eyes locked with Alec's. Had they always been so beautiful or was Alexander's beauty only enhanced by this moment of intimacy and all the emotions and heady wants flowing through Magnus' veins?

"Relax," Alec whispered, apparently misunderstanding his expression for worry at messing up the steps.

"I'm relaxed," Magnus immediately answered.

He flashed Alec a smile that he hoped was both seductive and charming, although innocent enough, and he felt deeply satisfied when Alexander blinked fast, his lips parting as if he wanted to say something but couldn't decide what exactly.

"Are _you_ relaxed?" Magnus teased him, seeing an opening in Alec's clear trouble.

"Of course I am," Alec blurted out.

If the way his hands tightened around Magnus' own hand and waist was anything to by, he was lying - and badly so.

"You're starting to get the hang of it," Alec added, as if he felt the need to talk to hide his embarrassment, that was only highlighted by his unusual babbling. "We should dance."

"We... We _are_ dancing, Alexander," Magnus reminded him.

He couldn't help but chuckle at the way the older man's face morphed into one of horror as he realised what utter nonsense he was spewing and watching him scramble for something smart to say in order to do some damage control was hilarious.

"Yes, of course, I mean, I was just... You know..."

"Trying to say we should dance together more often?" Magnus innocently suggested.

"No!" Alec answered, horrified, before he realised what his tone could imply and turned beet red, "Not that it isn't pleasant or anything but I... You know what I mean."

Magnus honestly didn't but he liked to get Alec all worked up too much to pretend that he did. He couldn't believe that tall, dark, brooding Alexander was reduced to a spluttering mess once someone was in his arms, dancing - or trying to. To think that Magnus had blushed as Izzy glanced between the two of them with a knowing smirk! He shouldn't have worried: Alec was worse than he was, an absolute mess!

"Well, this is painful to watch."

Both Alec and Magnus jumped when Isabelle reminded them that she was in the same room as them, still sitting on her bed, with annoyance plastered all over her face. Unless that was frustration? What exactly had she tried to achieve by making them dance together? Magnus had first thought that she was serious when saying she didn't feel well enough to teach him the waltz herself but now, he wasn't so sure of her innocence anymore.

He couldn't blame her: he had tried to take advantage himself, seizing the chance of being so close to Alec to try something - how well that one had worked out - but _Isabelle_... Had she deliberately put them in a situation where something could possibly happen? Could it be that she was Magnus' ally in this? She had already hinted at something going on between them before, at the inn, but he had believed she was merely trying to justify their sleeping arrangements to the receptionist. How naive he had been!

"You two are ridiculous," she added as she stood up, "You should settle this. I'll be in the tearoom if you need me, which I highly doubt."

Magnus only noticed that Alec was still holding him when he abruptly let go, his eyes following his sister's silhouette as she walked out of the cabin and closed the door behind herself. The older man looked a bit spooked, on the verge of running after Isabelle to beg her not to leave him alone with Magnus, who didn't quite know what to make of it. Had he misread Alec so badly? Could it be that Alexander was in fact not interested at all and didn't want to stay alone with him for fear of awkwardness? He couldn't picture Alec like this, though... He guessed there was only one way to be sure... Weren't bold honesty and straightforwardness the key to their dilemma, here?

"Is she right?" he asked, his eyes pinning Alec where he awkwardly stood, his shoulders stooping and making him look suddenly less tall and impressive.

"What about?"

Oh, so that was how he wanted to play it? Well, Magnus would play by his own rules too, then. He was a bit tried of skirting the perimeter without ever going into the core of the issue. Tentativeness could be nice and easy, for it didn't put your heart on the line, but now he wanted some certainty, which he'd cruelly lacked in his life so far.

"I like you," Magnus declared, the matter-of-factness he'd aimed for coming out a bit more aggressive than planned. "And I think you like me too but just to be sure, I'd rather hear you say it."

He stared at Alec, waiting for his reaction as his heartbeat quickened. He felt oddly lightheaded with anticipation, both anxious and excited, a small part of him downright scared to get an answer that he wouldn't like. Then though, he would know for sure.

"Magnus..." Alec started, looking pained, which didn't bode well.

"Just tell me," he interrupted the older man, his voice a bit too high. "The truth, that's all I ask."

Alec's face did something weird then, as if he'd bitten into a lemon. What was Magnus supposed to deduce from that?

"It's... Magnus, it's complicated..." he tried again.

"Not in my book, it isn't," Magnus shot back. "Either you like me or you don't - and if you don't, I can take it. Don't be a coward, Alec."

A glare answered him and Magnus had to hide a smirk, for there was the fierce man he'd grown used to since that first evening at the Hunter's moon, the man whose buttons he could push almost effortlessly.

"I'm not a coward," the other growled, moving toward Magnus, who didn't step back only because he trusted Alexander and knew he would never hurt him.

"Then prove it," Magnus challenged him, "Tell m..."

Suddenly, Alec's lips were on his, pushing forward as the man fisted his hands into Magnus' shirt and pressed him against the wall of the cabin. Completely stupefied by this unexpected turn of events, Magnus didn't react at first, irresponsive against Alec's mouth, until he snapped out of it - and there was no stopping him. Wrapping both arms around Alexander's neck, loving the few inches the taller man had on him that forced him to plaster himself against the other's firm body to find the right angle for their heads, Magnus finally moved his lips.

It was rough, nearly desperate as their worlds met, collapsed, crashed into one another and surged up again, more powerful with their joined forces, and Magnus closed his eyes, revelling into the warmth that was filling his whole body. Alec tried to move away then, maybe to breathe, maybe to speak, but Magnus would have none of it. He'd waited for this moment for so long that he wouldn't satisfy himself with only a few seconds of this breathless kiss, so he chased Alec's mouth when he attempted to step back and he smiled once he clearly felt the older man give in and stay.

It had been a while since he'd kissed anyone and he had obviously never kissed Alec but still, from clumsy and artless, they quickly turned their embrace into something that was less rushed and more skilled but also, much needier. Tiny moans were leaving Alexander's throat to end on the tip of Magnus' tongue, who eagerly swallowed them, wishing he could remember their deliciously obscene sound forever.

One of Alec's hand uncurled to cup his jaw, fingertips hot and shaky on his skin, until they grew steadier and gently held Magnus back as the other stopped kissing him on one last wet sound. Magnus stared at him, proudly sporting a stupid smile, even though he had no reason to: one wild kiss didn't mean anything definite.

"Wasn't so hard, was it?" he asked before Alec could say anything - and utter needless apologies, most likely.

"I guess not," he admitted quite grudgingly, "but..."

"And it was great?" Magnus pressed on.

"Yes, absolutely," Alec answered without shame, "but..."

"So we can do it again, right?"

This time, Alexander halted. Magnus could see his brain work fast, overthinking everything, the good and the bad, and he wondered which of these two would win him over. The other male looked torn and Magnus felt almost guilty for making him go through this and forcing him to deal with the reservations he seemed to have had at first, until Alec eventually looked up.

"Yes," he breathed out, before he got his hands and lips on Magnus again.

  


  


Magnus woke up with a start that night and he groaned when the darkness outside the narrow window of the cabin showed him that it was still far from dawn. He abruptly covered his mouth when he remembered that he wasn't the only one in this cabin and he cautiously peeked over the side of his bed to check that he hadn't upset Isabelle's and Alec's rest as they slept in the bunks beneath.

He could vaguely see Isabelle, who had finally succumbed to her exhaustion and managed to fall asleep despite the rolling of the ship. Alec's bed, however... Magnus frowned when he realised that it was empty. Hadn't they been over this already? He'd insisted that Alec stayed in the cabin tonight to rest properly instead of keeping watch outside and now, the damn fool was not in his bed? How bold of him.

Magnus carefully descended the ladder and padded toward the door of the cabin, that he opened as silently as he could. Glad that he hadn't made a noise, he closed it just as softly and turned around, only to give out a started yelp when he realised that there was a huge dark form on the side, next to his knees.

"What the f...?!"

"It's me," the dark shape said softly.

"Alexander?" Magnus whispered in shock, as he finally figured out that the other was sitting in the hallway with his knees drawn to his chest, "You scared me! What are you doing here? I thought I said you shouldn't..."

"I'm not guarding the cabin," Alec told him before he could finish. "I just couldn't sleep."

Magnus briefly wondered whether that was because of what had happened between them before. Did he regret these kisses? Was he worried about what it meant for them, for their journey and the results of their enterprise?

"Me neither," he said instead of asking any of his questions, sitting down next to the taller man. "Nightmares again."

For a second, he was tempted to share the details of the nightmare that had become recurrent: he ran in the snow to escape something or someone he couldn't see but which scared him to death nonetheless and at the end of it, right before he woke up, that man whom he didn't recognise and wasn't even sure of knowing appeared, with his strange tattoo on the side of his neck.

"Are you alright?" Alec enquired softly, turning sympathetic eyes toward Magnus.

"I'm fine," he answered on the same tone, although he wasn't as sincere as the other.

He could have spoken then, told Alec what bothered him, but he refrained himself from doing so. Magnus didn't... didn't want to let the other think that he was weak, for feeling so shaken up over a stupid nightmare. Nothing scary even happened in it! Just... The tension, the looming threat that he couldn't exactly distinguish made him feel more nervous than he probably should. No, he really didn't want to dive into this discussion.

"Are we going to talk about what happened?" Magnus suddenly asked.

Based on how shiny Alexander's eyes became, Magnus could tell that he'd grasped what he meant exactly.

"Probably not," Alec answered with a gruff.

"That's what I thought."

How predictable, how typical of them, really, to upset the dynamic of their relation as thoroughly as a kiss could, only not to mention it at all later? It wasn't a surprise that Alec wanted to stay quiet on the topic, considering his overall taciturn demeanour, and to be honest, Magnus wasn't sure that he actually looked forward to talking about it either. He would never admit it aloud but... He was scared that Alec would consider it like nothing of importance, while Magnus thought that it mattered very, very much.

They had kissed, over and over again, until they were drunk on each other, until their lips were swollen and felt numb, until... until Isabelle had interrupted them rather rudely by opening the door and giving them a cheeky grin as they sprang apart. _About time_ , she'd said with a roll of her eyes before she set a collection of sandwiches on her mattress and muttered something about patterns that couldn't repeat themselves and thus, eating in the cabin instead of going to the restaurant again.

Magnus and Alec had shared a glance and then decided not to stay in each other's arms, although the younger man would have wished for nothing else. After their waltz, he could say that Alexander's arms were quite comfortable when holding him and he had decided that he deserved to feel that good a bit more often.

"How comes you can't sleep?" Magnus asked, hoping to distract himself from these traitorous thoughts that always brought him back to the topic of their kisses.

"I'm nervous," Alec confessed quietly, as if that was a weakness and thus, a source of shame.

"Why?" the younger immediately asked again, trying, hoping to understand Alexander better.

He wasn't in a sharing mood though, because he didn't answer and while Magnus first guessed that maybe he was thinking about what to tell him, phrasing the reasons for his nervousness in his mind, it soon turned out that silence would remain Alec's only answer.

"Oh, come on..." Magnus grumbled, before he bumped shoulders with Alec in gentle encouragement. "I'm not going to judge you if you tell me you're afraid of the dark."

At least it made Alec snort but the older man didn't take it as his cue to start talking and then, Magnus had a thought. What if this was about the kiss and what it meant? Maybe Alec didn't want to talk about it not because of his usual reticence to speak of personal matters like that, but because he was just as afraid as Magnus to know what changes it would bring?

Already knowing that he would probably regret asking the question, Magnus gathered his courage and slowly said:

"Is it about the kiss?"

"I thought we weren't talking about that," Alec answered, his tone soft but his body tensing imperceptibly.

Magnus only realised it because they were sitting close to each other, so close that he could feel every breath Alec took in then let out, and the sudden tension in his limbs didn't go unnoticed.

"Unless you don't feel good about it," Magnus insisted. "If I did anything that made you uncomfortable..."

"You did none of that," Alec interrupted, still softly, although he sounded also quite determined to make Magnus understand that his current mood was not his responsibility. "It was great and I loved every minute of it."

Magnus let out a breath of relief that he hadn't been aware of holding back and Alexander took his hand to squeeze it. For a minute, he'd feared... Alec had kissed him first, that much was true, but Magnus had been the one asking for more, lurching forward, and even if Alec had answered the kiss with avidity, several times, he didn't want to imagine that he might have felt obligated to. Although he wasn't certain that anyone - not even Isabelle - could force him to do anything he didn't want to. That man was so stubborn!

"Okay, good," Magnus whispered and before either he could chicken out or Alexander changed the topic, he added, "You know, even after that kiss, I'm not asking you for anything more if you don't want to. You don't have to feel threatened or..."

"It isn't about feeling vulnerable in your arms, even if I kind of do," Alec answered with shocking openness and sincerity, a first for Magnus, and he finished in a breath, "In a very good way."

He could only blink at the reveal, his mind desperately trying to find something to say to _that_ but his silence was excused when Alec, resigned, heaved a sigh.

"It's... It's not about that," he repeated with sadness. "It's... Magnus, what will happen once Asmodeus recognises you as his son?"

"What do you mean?" he asked, his brows furrowing, not even pointing out that it was all still hypothetical.

"You'll be royalty," Alec explained, his hand clenching onto Magnus'. "I won't. It will mean the end of us, _if_ there's an us, and we have to think of that before we break both of our hearts."

Magnus lost his breath for a second at the new possibility Alexander had just opened his eyes to. While there was a life before and after meeting Alec, he didn't want to imagine there could be a life _without_ him. No. Suddenly, he understood him a lot better.

"You're right," Magnus eventually whispered, his grip vice-like on Alexander's hand. "We are not talking about it."

  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> One step forward, two steps backward... Oops! Thank you for reading ;)


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here it comes! I was so excited about finally getting to this chapter, I hope you'll like it too! We're slowly getting to an end of this story but don't worry, I have many more surprises for you before we get there. For now, enjoy this chapter!

  


"Land, oh!" Isabelle exclaimed as soon as they set foot on hard, solid ground the next morning, after one full day and two nights of ferry travel. "My love! I never want to leave you again!"

"You're so dramatic," Alec chuckled behind her, holding out her bag since he already carried his own as well as Chairman Meow, who'd preferred his company to that of Magnus this morning, to the younger man's utter dismay.

"Must run in the family, then," Isabelle commented, sounding much snarkier than was allowed for someone who'd been dying a little on the ferry not ten minutes prior.

Magnus, the traitor, chuckled and nodded in agreement, so Alec led them toward the bus stop a few hundred meters away from the docks while grumbling between his grinded teeth. When they teamed up against him, Izzy and Magnus were both invincible and insufferable.

The bus they would be riding for a good chunk of the morning would drop them off a few minutes walking distance from the huge gates that separated Lilith's mansion from the mere mortals' world. Alec already felt anxious in anticipation of the excruciating - for Izzy and him, at least - time they would spend there. Neither of them could show their nervousness to Magnus though and Alec was glad that Izzy felt good enough to entertain their friend. Sort of.

While he was most definitely not friends with Magnus - although he didn't waste his time wondering what they were exactly, since the answer would hurt his head and probably his heart just as much - he could tell that Izzy and he were closer to that, had been for a while, even, so he prayed that Isabelle wouldn't fall in that trap. What Alec had shared with Magnus during the night about the impossibility of _them_ also applied to the young man's friendship with his sister, although it would certainly be less scandalous...

It killed Alec to consider this unpleasant future of not having Magnus around: he had been so alone for most of his life, he surely deserved a few friends. If Asmodeus accepted him, though... He would have no choice.

"Please don't tell me we're riding _that_ bus," Magnus moaned when they arrived at the stop.

The reason for his desperate tone became clear when Alec looked up and realised that the lone vehicle waiting for its last passengers was, of course, theirs as well as crowded. To think they were going to spend two hours in there, if traffic was decent... If Lilith's mansion hadn't been so far away and if the air had been less cold, he would have preferred to go on foot rather than stay in a stuffy, overcrowded bus where there probably wouldn't remain any free seat.

Alec was almost right. After paying for their tickets and assuring the concerned driver that no, Chairman Meow wasn't going to pee in his bus, they made their way inside the vehicle and found one last free seat, that the boys offered to Izzy so that she could rest a little more. As eventful as Magnus' and Alec's last night onboard has been, hers had barely been better than the first and even though she tried to hide it, she was exhausted.

That was how Alec and Magnus found themselves standing only a few inches apart, pressed from all sides by other passengers who hadn't been able to catch a seat either, while Izzy dozed off with Chairman Meow already asleep on her knees. And then the bus jerked forward as the driver pressed down the accelerator.

"Ow!"

Magnus lost his balance and crashed into Alec, who wrapped his arm around him and halted his movement just in time to keep him from smashing his nose in his chest. His other hand was clenching onto the bus handle above his head, his muscles straining with the effort to maintain himself upright with Magnus' added weight.

"Thank you," the younger man said, trying to step back and give Alec his personal space again... only to realise that he hadn't been the only one to shift following the abrupt departure of the bus and that he was now stuck, with no room left to back away. "Uh..."

"It's okay," Alec said, even though it was very much _not_ , because Magnus' whole body was pressed against his own and the shocks of the road were not making it easy to forget that fact.

"This is awkward," Magnus whispered.

"Could be worse," the older man automatically answered, although he didn't know how the situation could have been even less savoury than this.

They hadn't decided to avoid each other at all cost after their discussion - which would have been hard to do anyway, since they were travelling together - but they had tacitly agreed to keep some distance between them. Apparently, Fate had a funny way to tell them they shouldn't.

Not that they'd respected their own accord themselves... That very morning, all they'd needed in order to throw their agreement through the window had been Izzy entering the bathroom to shower, and Magnus hadn't lasted thirty seconds before he was scrambling down the ladder of his bed to join Alec in his, intent on kissing him hard.

Alec had barely protested.

"We... we said... we... shouldn't," he'd panted against Magnus' mouth after a while, at the same time as his hands ventured underneath the sweater the young man wore as pyjama's top to touch his warm skin.

"I know," Magnus had answered, breathless, peppering kisses along his jaw, descending toward his neck but hindered by the eternal turtleneck Alec was wearing at all times. "Fucking..."

He'd tried to tug his collar down to reach his throat, except that Alec had flipped them over before he could succeed and proceeded on kissing a bruise into the dip between Magnus' neck and clavicle.

"Alexander..." Magnus had moaned loudly.

Not loudly enough to drown the sounds of the shower spray that suddenly stopped, announcing that Isabelle would return soon. Alec had pulled away, kneeling by the side of his bed to put some distance between Magnus and him, like a safety net, only to have the other follow his movement and sit on the edge of the mattress, his erratic breathing echoing his own, the same desire burning in their veins.

"Sorry," he'd whispered.

"Don't be," Alec had said, resting his cheek on Magnus' thigh, his eyes closing. "I'm as guilty as you are."

Magnus' hand in his hair had made his whole body shiver with want he'd immediately repressed, his face crunching. It wasn't the time but he was so tired of stomping on every single desire or emotion he experienced around Magnus...

"Can't we have this, even just for a little while?" the young man has asked in a breath, almost scared of the answer.

"I don't know," Alec had replied, his heart heavy, placing one soft kiss on Magnus' knee before he stood up and stepped back as the bathroom door opened, "I don't know."

He couldn't decide whether kissing Magnus, after their enthralling waltz, had been the worst or the best mistake of his life. A mistake it was, most-likely, and he couldn't even bring himself to regret it, not yet.

This bus journey though, he regretted already.

  


  


From what Alec could remember of his childhood, Lilith's mansion was huge. He had only been there once though so maybe his memories were altered and his impressions, not so accurate since he'd been no more than eight years old at the time and had been easily amazed by everything he saw. Still, he doubted that the Princess, sister of the King, would raise her son in a place that wasn't both grand from the outside and exquisite from the inside.

The bus dropped them off in a village, a quiet getaway destined to many government functionaries rather than tourists, ensuring some tranquillity for Lilith and Jonathan. When on holiday, officials rarely sought out the members of the very royal family they were getting away from...

Isabelle had booked a room in a small, family-owned hotel from the phone she'd _borrowed_ on the ferry before she'd returned it to its rightful owner, like she'd promised Magnus. They stopped there first to drop their bags as well as Chairman Meow, who was all too happy to let them leave on their own while he engulfed remains of tuna the hostess had so kindly offered to that _cute ball of fur_.

"Is there anything I should or shouldn't do when I meet Lilith?" Magnus enquired as they took a turn into a road that gently rose along a forested hillside.

"Be polite," Isabelle answered.

"Don't mention Lorenzo," Alec added.

"And be your charming self," his sister concluded with a grin that made Magnus roll his eyes.

"I'm being serious," he chastised them both.

"We are, too," Izzy told him. "Lilith is a simple woman and a very caring mother and sister. You don't have to bow to her, she'll probably laugh in your face if you do. Or smack you."

Alec chuckled, the memory of his first meeting with the Princess still clear in his head, contrarily to those of her place. His five-year-old self had bowed, clumsily so, only to have Lilith laugh and wrap him in a tight hug, laughing and ruffling his hair as she congratulated his mother and his father on his manners.

Unexpected pain bloomed in his chest at the memory. His parents had been happy, then, and he had been too, just a little boy having fun in the palaces and mansions of princes and princesses. Twenty-two years later, that innocence had vanished, leaving behind only anger and frustration, balanced by the obsessive ambition to restore his family name... And now there was Magnus.

"Is this...?" the latter started to ask before he trailed off, his mouth hanging open.

"Yes," Isabelle laughed, "This is it."

Alec glanced at Magnus with a smile before he followed his gaze and looked at the iron gates in front of which they had stopped. Wide and tall, these gates were impressive in themselves but the golden wrought iron finials in the shape of lilies that topped them turned it into art. Magnus gaped at the immensity of the garden spreading beyond the gates, majestic despite the winter and the lack of bright flowers, and Alec had to elbow him in the ribs so he would close his mouth and pay attention to the guard who had suddenly appeared.

"Can I help you?"

His tone didn't sound too suspicious, although his attentive eyes were already scanning the three of them from head to toe, and Alec made a point of doing the same, eyeing the gun in the man's thigh holster before he glanced up, noticing the earpiece that kept the guard connected to the rest of the security team, no doubt.

"We're here to see Her Highness Lilith," he explained, looking straight in the guard's brown eyes to show how serious and decided he was.

"Does she expect you?" the guard asked without showing his trouble, if he felt any, at the somewhat unusual request: when people wanted an audience with the Princess, they normally went to Erchomai City to request one, rather than bothering Lilith directly in her mansion.

"No," he answered, "but I'm sure she'll want to see us once she knows who we are."

The guard blinked at that and Alec felt Magnus tense in anticipation next to him. He took a deep breath, knowing that once he would give his and Izzy's last name, there would be no turning back, neither for them nor for Magnus... Nor for Magnus _and_ him as a whole.

"Lightwood," he eventually said. "Isabelle and Alexander Lightwood."

Judging by the way the guard blinked and brought his hand to his ear, he and his superiors knew exactly who they were and had a good inkling of who they were probably travelling with: the guard's eyes widened as they glanced at Magnus and he quickly stepped aside when the gates opened, probably on a command from inside the mansion.

"If you please," the guard said, this close to bowing when Magnus stepped in, cueing his obvious surprise, "Follow the path toward the perron, my colleague will escort you inside."

"Thanks," Alec answered, quiet laconic, his heart beating too fast.

That was it.

"Who are you?" Magnus asked the siblings in a breath as they walked, apparently still shocked by the guard's reaction to his entrance. "You just said your names and... Are you sure you're not royalty too?"

Isabelle laughed, although it sounded a bit strained to Alec's ears, who knew her well.

"I swear we aren't," she told him with a smile, "but we do have relations."

"I bet," Magnus chuckled, although his eyebrows furrowed afterward. "Lightwood... It sounds familiar. I don't think you ever mentioned it before, though. Are you positive you don't have royal cousins somewhere? Celebrities, perhaps?"

"A hundred percent," Alec asserted with an easy smile, even though he felt a bit nervous.

Isabelle and he had made a point of not using their last name around him to avoid any risk of potentially linking them to _the_ Lightwoods whom more than a few people held responsible for the loss of the Crown Prince of Edom - rightly so, Alec bitterly thought, no matter what Isabelle had to say about it - and also because they hadn't wanted him to know about the reward they were after... in the beginning. Now, so many things had changed, their motivations on top of the list...

When they arrived at the bottom of the elegant staircase leading to a huge front door, another security guard came to them and invited them inside. Magnus stayed a bit behind, gaping at everything. Alec didn't think he recognised any element and trinket of the decor, which had without a doubt changed a lot during the past ten years and more, but when Lilith herself appeared, he could tell that _she_ hadn't.

Her hair as dark as her skin was pale, her eyes piercing, her gestures precise and controlled, all of her current self fit his memory, save for the few lines of worry around her eyes that had not been there before the kidnapping of her nephew and her own son's birth, years after the tragedy. When she spoke, her voice itself brought him fifteen years back, at a time he was just a young teenager who didn't know much about fights, secrets and how to stay off the radar.

"Alexander and Isabelle Lightwood," she stated without the slightest hint of a smile, clearly not too happy to see them - and they wouldn't blame her for this cold, unfriendly welcome. "It has been a while."

"It has," Izzy agreed, choosing to grin while Lilith has clearly decided to remain closed off, "but you haven't changed one bit."

Alec glanced at Magnus, still standing behind him and whom the Princess was ignoring so far, and he discreetly took in his expression: intrigued, as if he was trying to determine whether he recognised Lilith from far-away memories or just knew her face from the pictures of Asmodeus' family that Alec had shown him.

"You're mistaken," Lilith answered, "if you think I am still the same. How could I, when my brother... But I'm sure you know everything about his troubles."

Alec winced at the jab, the veiled accusation that he and Isabelle could understand even though it wasn't explicit. They hadn't expected otherwise, knowing where the Lightwoods and Edom's royal family stood, but Alec still felt the hurt inside him, tugging at his insecurities and his pride. Sometimes, he envied his sister's lesser interest for the - foolish, according to their own mother - quest he had jumped in headfirst, set on bringing his family back to its former reputation and glory. The Lightwoods had never been made for the shadows and the opprobrious pages of history books.

"We have come to put his troubles at rest," Alec declared, standing imperceptibly straighter, his hands behind his back. "You know of our purpose."

Lilith's eyes seemed to glow with anger and sorrow at his words, betraying years of suffering at the remembrance of what had been and would never be again. She was right, in the end. She _had_ changed.

"What I know..." Lilith started softly, although her tone didn't lack in cold, enduring but pained fury, "is that my nephew is most-likely dead and my family, forever torn. I know of your _purpose_ , as you say, and I know you are bound to fail. That's all I need to know."

Alec gritted his teeth and in the periphery of his vision, he caught Izzy's glance sent his way, worried and tense. He tried to gave her a subtle nod to reassure her, let her know that he wouldn't lose his composure and start a fight with the sister of the King, no matter how hot his blood was boiling in his veins. Yet, he was only appeased for real when he felt a gentle touch on his hands, still joined behind his back, and he didn't need to turn around to identify the calming presence as Magnus'.

"I am not my father," Alec eventually muttered. "In fact, Isabelle and I have come for a reason, that you'll be most pleased to know... and meet."

When Alec turned around, incidentally dislodging Magnus' tender hands that were still on his, he cast him a inquisitive glance, wondering if he felt ready for this, and the younger man nodded. Still, Alec didn't miss Magnus' own confusion and curiosity at the strange dialogue he'd heard between Lilith and him. Nibbling on his lower lip, Alec added it to the growing list of secrets he should share with Magnus... one day.

On Alec's indication, the young man stepped forward, shyly looking at Lilith, who did a double take and stared at him with her lips parted in shock.

"Lilith, meet Magnus," he declared softly, unwilling to disturb her observation.

Her expression betrayed her surprise and for a few seconds, she looked like she had seen a ghost, until the faint hope that had started to illuminate her face dimmed and then vanished completely.

"My nephew's name isn't Magnus," she snapped with scorn, although the contempt was mostly there to hide her pain at the disillusion. "Just because he looks like him... Just because you've taught him how to act like him, that doesn't mean..."

"It doesn't mean that I'm the one you've expected for so long," Magnus said softly, his calm interruption stunning Lilith into silence. "I'm sorry if my presence only twists the knife further in the wound."

"Magnus..." Isabelle whispered, suddenly afraid of seeing him give up because of Lilith's harsh words.

"Regardless," Magnus kept going, "I... We have come from far away only to meet you, taking great risks while doing so. We just want to talk and I... I want to know who I am, whether I belong to your family or not... And if I don't, rest assured, I won't bother you for long."

A tense silence answered his request, so long that Alec considered turning around and leaving Lilith to her mansion and her grief, until she nodded.

"Let's talk," she agreed, "I must say I'm curious to know how the Lightwoods found you."

"Completely by chance," Isabelle answered while Lilith led them to a soberly decorated salon and called for an attendant to prepare some coffee with a plate of biscuits on the side.

"I was desperate to go to Edom to find my family," Magnus explained softly, playing with his ring nervously, "Izzy and Alec said they could bring me here and that maybe... they could help with my family."

It hadn't exactly happened like that but Alec was grateful that Magnus had apparently decided to keep quiet on their disagreements, how he'd thought the siblings were crazy when they had suggested that the young man belonged to the royal family of Edom... Lilith would not have been impressed.

"Do you think we are?" Lilith asked severely, "Family, that is?"

"I... I don't... know," Magnus said on a tone that was shaky with nerves and efforts, "I'm trying to remember you, I am, but... I don't know."

"What do you mean, remember?" Lilith enquired, her brows arching up in genuine wonder rather than anger.

She'd probably expected Magnus to use the term _recognise_.

"My memories are... not quite there," the young man explained, "I can't remember anything from before I was six and woke up in an orphanage. Magnus is my name, because I _chose_ it. I don't remember anything from my past."

"How convenient," Lilith whispered, glaring at Izzy and Alec in what was a clear accusation of them trying to fool her.

They were, in a way, because they really hadn't any proof of Magnus' identity but... He wanted to find his parents and if the royal family was the first on the list of people who'd lost a child, it wasn't their fault, was it?

When the attendant came back with their coffees and a small pile of cinnamon biscuits, Lilith waited until they had a cup in their hands each and then, she attacked. Not with her fists, but with questions worded in a way that would confuse anyone who wasn't part of Edom's royal family. What was Asmodeus' motto? Why and in which ways was it different from the nation's? Was Asmodeus' great-grand-father a second- or a third-degree relative of the Archduke Azazel? Which inside rebellion had propelled the old, crazy great-aunt Iris once removed on the throne before the army regained control and established the rightful king back on the royal seat?

Magnus answered all the questions but Alec knew that Lilith wasn't asking all of those only to determine whether or not he was who the siblings pretended he was: she was merely investigating how far Isabelle and he had gone when it came to the young man's _education_ regarding the royal family.

She seemed satisfied and Alec relaxed enough to take a sip of his now cold coffee, but he choked when he heard the following question:

"What do you remember of the kidnapping?" Lilith asked, the serene facade of her face upset by the tension in her hands, clenched around her cup of coffee.

"We told you he doesn't rememb..." Izzy started, only to grow quiet when Magnus raised his hand to interrupt her.

"It's alright, Isabelle..." he whispered with a tiny smile, before he looked at the Princess. "She's right, I can't remember what happened, if I even got abducted. I don't know. But... I've been having... nightmares, recently. I think they could be faded memories."

Alec shifted on his seat, increasingly curious and worried. He knew that Magnus had experienced some troublesome dreams that had even kept him up at night but he hadn't shared them, for a reason that only belonged to him. Dreams were precious, private, and nightmares even more so when they shook you to the depths of your soul.

"Nightmares?" Lilith repeated, betraying her sudden interest with the way she leaned forward.

"Only one, actually," Magnus explained, "but always the same. I'm... running, in the snow. Away from something... Someone, rather. I don't see much but it always ends with a man who appears to me..."

"The kidnapper?" Lilith asked. "What does he look like?"

Magnus shook his head, unaware of the tension in the room as the three others held their breath. The siblings shared a glance: this was an exclusivity, the young man had never told them what he saw during these dreadful nights... Alec's hand shook around the cup.

"He doesn't feel like an enemy to me," Magnus whispered. "He's more of a... protector, I'd say. I can never see his face clearly but he has... a tattoo on his neck. Like a Z, with a short line in the middle of it. I don't know what it means."

Alec heard his sister gasp and saw Lilith's eyes widen to stare at Magnus with a new light in them. His heart was hammering against his ribcage as his throat dried up and maybe he was imagining it but under his collar, warmth seemed to pulse from the mark on his neck, exactly the same as the one Magnus had described. His hands shook harder. That meant...

"That's the symbol of the family who has been charged with the King's protection since the beginning of our dynasty," Lilith said on a grave, solemn tone, although her eyes were shining with tears. "We call it the Rune of the Keepers. Only members of the royal family and the protectors themselves know about that symbol."

Magnus gaped, glancing from the siblings to Lilith, waiting for another explanation, for one of them to yell that it was a joke. When nothing came except for the Princess' tears that started rolling down her cheeks in silence, he stammered:

"S... so that m... means..."

Lilith abruptly stood up, smiled in the middle of her tears, and she wrapped the stunned young man in a hug.

"Welcome home, Magnus."

Alec finally dropped his cup, that shattered on the floor with not as loud a noise as the one his broken heart made.

  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! <3


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I graded more than a hundred exams between today and yesterday so I thought I deserved a break and here we go, a new chapter! As you can see, I've put up the number of chapters I expect to write for this story but it could change so keep an eye on it! Enjoy this chapter ;)

  


Alec stared at the pieces of porcelain without actually seeing the shards, blood rushing to his ears as a spiral of desperate thoughts stormed his mind. Magnus knew the Rune of the Keeper. Magnus remembered some of his past, even not consciously. Magnus was Asmodeus' son, Magnus was royalty, Magnus... would never be his. Worse, Alec didn't have the right to be sad, not when Magnus had finally found what he had spent years looking for.

"Alexander?" a voice full of concern called him. "Are you alright?"

Alec looked up, gazing into Magnus' beautiful eyes that were set on him, wondering if he was okay, concerned by his reaction. On his other side, Izzy was biting her lower lip, sadness and understanding at her brother's distress etched into her face.

"I'm... fine," he answered with hesitation, his voice hoarse. "I... I just need some air."

He didn't wait for an authorisation, didn't wait for Magnus to ask more questions, and he stood up. He probably didn't look too good because the young man's eyes filled with disquietude, even more so than before, and Alec had to gesture between Lilith and him to keep him there.

"Don't worry," he said bravely, "You two... talk. I'll be right back."

He left without wasting one more second, his head hurting, his sight blurry and his heart bleeding, and he stumbled outside, on the perron, where he sat on the first step of the staircase. Inhaling deeply, Alec tried to calm down and think.

Magnus was Asmodeus' son. For real. Wasn't that a blessing? Izzy and he had tried to fool the Princess, for lack of a better word: they'd had no proof of Magnus' identity. Later, if they'd passed the test with Lilith, they would have tried with Asmodeus as well but now, no manipulation was required. He let out a bitter laugh: that was all they had ever wanted for Magnus, wasn't it? They'd promised they'd help him to find his family and now, they had succeeded. Alec should have felt proud, satisfied at Izzy's and his accomplishment and at the very least, happy for Magnus - that, he was.

However, in his heart, pride and happiness were crushed under the weight of heartbreak. It was inevitable, he reminded himself, he had seen it coming as soon as he'd realised that he felt something different for Magnus and he had expected it, but he hadn't been able to fully prepare himself for the pain that would explode inside his chest. Perhaps, deep down, he'd hoped that they would fail.

Alec closed his eyes, slumping a bit more on the staircase. What should have been the best moment of his life only resulted in bitterness. He wouldn't have wanted Magnus to stay an orphan, no, but he would have liked... He didn't even know. _They_ weren't possible, as he'd known from the start, not only because Magnus was now royalty and he wasn't but... Alec wished that for once, luck got on his side so that he would never have to disclose the other reasons that made their relation impossible. He'd preferred it like that.

Alec didn't know how long he remained on the perron, alone with his thoughts to nurse his broken heart and piece it back together before he had to face Magnus again. He tensed when he heard footsteps in his back, thinking - hoping? - that the younger man was coming to him, but then he wished it was his sister, because he severely needed some support and love right then, even though he wouldn't admit it aloud. He wasn't supposed to break down.

In the end, though, neither Magnus nor Isabelle reached him. The footsteps belonged to Lilith, who carefully sat down next to him in silence, although she didn't stay quiet for long.

"Judging by your reaction to his knowledge of it, I assume you never talked about the Rune of the Keepers with Magnus," she slowly said, wasting no time in beating around the bush.

Feeling miserable, Alec shook his head.

"Good," Lilith added, to his surprise. "For a second, I wondered whether he knew it because you had mentioned it to him or..."

"I haven't," Alec assured her, "Not while I wasn't perfectly sure of his identity. Royal secrets aren't mine to reveal but to keep."

"Thank you," Lilith told him softly, although her voice was unwavering, intense.

She wasn't thanking him lightly, this wasn't about not unveiling secrets that weren't his: _thank you_ , she was saying, _for sewing my family back together, for bringing the heir to the throne back to his father and his nation... Thank you for making us whole again_.

"I know the extent of your sacrifice," Lilith said again. "I was rude earlier and you were right: you aren't your father and you weren't responsible for what happened. You were a child. All your life, spent with that burden on your shoulders... Some would say you got used to it but... your most recent sacrifice probably wasn't made any easier because of it."

"I'm sorry?" Alec grumbled, feigning not to understand her meaning but genuinely surprised that she'd seen through him.

Lilith stared at him with an expression akin to pity. Alec looked away, unable to stand it.

"You love him," was all she said.

He blinked, bewildered that just a bit more than one hour had sufficed to make her realise the depth of his feelings for Magnus, but he didn't try to protest or deny it. What use would it be? He couldn't lie to her and he would definitively not lie to himself.

"He doesn't know, does he?" she asked then, "About this..."

Slowly, giving him the time to move away if he didn't want her to touch him, Lilith raised her hand and gently grabbed Alec's collar, that she tugged down just enough to reveal the dark lines of a Rune of the Keepers, the black tattoo creating a sharp contrast with the pale skin of Alec's neck. He allowed her to watch for a few seconds before he shrugged, dislodging her hand, and he put his collar back in place.

"I told you I never mentioned the Rune to him," Alec repeated, "and he never saw it. I keep it hidden. So no, Magnus doesn't know about my family's relation to the throne nor about its involvement in the kidnapping and... and it's probably better that way."

Lilith nodded but Alec couldn't be sure that she actually agreed with him. If he could just hide the truth from Magnus a bit longer, if they could part ways while Magnus didn't hate him... He would be glad.

The Princess looked back to the entrance of the mansion, pensive, and Alec could tell she had many questions to ask him, since the shock of the reunion with the siblings had now diminished. His family had always been on good terms with the Princess before the accident and now that Alec and Izzy had reappeared, she probably wanted to know what had happened to them after the kidnapping, where they had gone, how they'd found their way back to Edom... Instead, Lilith hesitantly asked:

"The man M... Magnus sees in his dreams," she stumbled on her nephew's new name, foreign to her lips still, "is he...?"

"Your heard him," Alec answered, "He said he was a protector... That's my father he sees."

Lilith nodded. She'd probably guessed the answer long before Alec confirmed it and yet, she'd chosen to ask anyway, if only to chat a bit longer with him. Was she trying to reconnect with the little boy she had known all these years ago, trying to erase or somewhat soothe the burn of the abandonment the kids had felt when their world had been turned upside-down, once the Palace had announced its decision concerning his family?

Alec wasn't sure that he could blame the royal family for that: Magnus' relatives had been too crushed by their loss to think clearly and they just hadn't wanted anything to do with the Lightwoods anymore. Their despair had nearly destroyed them, Alec remembered as much, and even as a child he hadn't blamed Asmodeus for not heeding the needs of children who had nothing to do with the kidnapping. He'd imagined losing Isabelle and he had known he would share the King's and the Queen's pain.

"Why do you hide your Rune?" Lilith suddenly wondered, bringing him back to the situation at hand. "The Rune of the Keepers is the symbol of your family, a symbol of dignity and honour... Why not reveal it? Especially to Magnus?"

Alec bit his lips. Lilith might be curious, deeply interested or merely trying to apologise after everything they had gone through, but he had no reason to reveal his secrets to her. So he just shrugged - she didn't seem convinced - and he chose not to answer her. He didn't want to tell her that he had gotten the tattoo like the familial tradition commanded it, even though his parents had told him it was useless, for there was no one left to protect. He didn't want to talk about how they had argued, Alec yelling that _he_ at least wouldn't give up like they had.

Izzy didn't have the Rune tattooed on her neck but it wasn't to obey their parents, no... She had decided that she wouldn't let the Rune of the Keepers determine her life, and she had remained independent. She'd always been less invested in this mission than he was... He didn't resent her for that, because he understood her desire to have a real life, not one spent on the roads facing dangers.

Most of all, Alec didn't want to tell Lilith that he had vowed to keep it hidden until he found the Crown Prince of Edom. He didn't feel worthy of the Rune of the Keepers and he couldn't bring himself to carry it with pride as long as the young prince was still lost. He could, now... But then Magnus would know who he was, who his parents were, and it would be the end. The young man remembered the Rune but he didn't recall the name that went with it so far, and Alec would like to keep it that way: Magnus didn't have to know anything that would put a damper on his reunion with his family. He deserved to be happy.

Lost in his thoughts, Alec didn't notice when Lilith stood up and said something that wasn't meant for him, so he didn't listen. If he had, perhaps he wouldn't have been startled by Magnus' arrival when the young man plopped down on the stair next to him, only to moan in pain at the meeting between the hard marble and his butt. Alec chuckled.

"Don't laugh," Magnus chided him.

"I wouldn't dare," Alec answered with a laugh, "Your Highness."

"It sounds both unreal and ridiculous when you say it," the younger man added, pouting. "Please don't do that ever again. Don't... treat me differently."

His heart squeezing, Alec swallowed. Was Magnus purposefully ignoring it or had he already forgotten the discussion they'd had on the ferry, in the middle of the night?

"You'll always be Magnus to me," he declared, turning his head to face the Crown Prince of Edom and taking his hand as if to swear his allegiance. "The Magnus who's possessive with his cat, the Magnus who hates stolen cars, the Magnus who..."

"Kissed you silly?" he added with a shit-eating grin.

"That too," Alec admitted, rolling his eyes. "You're insufferable."

Magnus looked quite happy with himself though, so Alec would let it slide - he was comforted in his decision when the young man lifted their hands to his mouth and kissed the back of Alec's, his lips soft and tender on his skin.

Shoulder against shoulder, hand in hand, they remained silent for a while, until Alec forced himself to break it. If he didn't, he would give himself to the serenity of their closeness and he would never have the strength to do what he knew he would have to.

"What do you think about Lilith?" he asked.

Magnus opened his mouth to answer but then, he seemed to think better of it and closed his mouth again, looking at a loss for words. Struggling to gather his ideas, he stared helplessly at Alec, who mimicked Magnus' previous gesture and kissed his hand.

"Take your time," he said, "I understand this is quite... overwhelming."

"That's one way to put it," the younger man answered with a shaky laugh. "It feels incredible to... to finally have someone to call family. It feels so unreal though, after so many years of... being alone, to suddenly know that someone is there... I mean, I hope? I don't know her, I don't know if I can trust her. I want to but it's... hard to imagine that just because she's there and I'm here, and we know who we are to each other, we can be an actual family."

"It's going to take some time for you to open up to each other," Alec conceded, "but soon, you'll have your father too. Maybe it will help."

Magnus gave out an embarrassed chuckle and he shook his head from side to side, before his gorgeous eyes came up to rest on Alec's face once more. Alec bit the inside of his cheek, trying to resist the need to kiss the young man. How would he manage, once he would be forbidden to relish into the warmth of this gaze set on him?

"Do you believe me if I tell you I'm even more scared to meet Asmodeus than I was before?" he asked, his laugh turning into a sound of nervousness edging on hysteria.

"He's waited for you for so long," Alec tried to comfort him, "Everything will be fine."

"But I've been _gone_ for so long," Magnus whispered, close to tears. "I don't remember him, I don't even remember myself. I'm probably very different from the little boy he knew and loved and I... I don't want to disappoint him."

This time, Alec couldn't do much to refrain from cupping Magnus' face, lifting his chin so that he would look at him and heed his words. He couldn't let Magnus doubt himself like that, couldn't allow him to put obstacles on his own way to happiness.

"Listen to me carefully, Magnus," he said, his lips inches apart from the young man's mouth. "Asmodeus is going to love you just as much as he loved the boy he used to know. He's craving the same happiness you've both been deprived of for so long. Right now, he's a man who thinks he's lost his only son forever and he has always lived with his - your - memories. Seeing you alive and breathing, witnessing the man you have grown into... Trust me, he'll love you and he'll be proud of you."

Next thing he knew, Alec got an armful of sobbing Magnus and he wrapped his arms around his body without needing much more prompting than that, kissing the top of the dark hair that was tickling his jaw. Alec rocked him gently, whispering encouragements and words of comfort in his ear. He let Magnus calm down at his own pace, uncaring of the security detail probably observing them curiously, paying no mind to Lilith and Isabelle who were inside and most likely waiting for their return. Knowing the two women, they understood their need for privacy and would allow them all the time they needed.

Alec was grateful for that. If he had to say goodbye, he wanted to do it on his own terms - enjoying Magnus' presence until the very last moment seemed like a good way to do it.

"So I'll be okay?" Magnus eventually asked, sniffling as he straightened up, somewhat, unwilling to get too far out of Alec's embrace.

"I'm sure of it," he answered, ignoring the pain of his chest that only increased the more they spoke, for he knew he wouldn't be there to see Magnus bloom into the happy man he deserved to be. "After all, Lilith welcomed you with open arms. Your father will do the same."

He was glad when Magnus nodded, finally understanding that he had nothing to fear anymore - and if he had, Alec would move mountains for him, to give him everything he ought to have and more. He was less satisfied though, when Magnus suddenly directed the topic back to him.

"Speaking of my... aunt," he started, only to giggle at the elating thought that yes, he had an aunt now, as surprising as it was, "What did she mean earlier, about your purpose? What was that about you and your father not being the same? You didn't seem... very happy about that."

Ah, there it was, the messy conversation he had hoped to avoid... Maybe he could still do so, if he was clever enough.

"It's no secret that I vowed to find Asmodeus' son," he explained, not looking at the younger man for fear of betraying himself and spill more secrets than he was supposed to. "As for my father... It's nothing you have to worry about."

When he spared him a glance, Alec realised that his friend's brows had furrowed and that he clearly awaited a more insightful clarification. Of course Magnus, stubborn Magnus, wouldn't be satisfied with that vague answer... Alec loved him for that, although it didn't serve his plans right now.

"I want to know, Alexander..." he whispered, resting his cheek on Alec's shoulder. "I want to know you."

Did Magnus have the slightest clue of how much his words, as desired as they were, hurt him? No, he didn't, couldn't, for why would he even begin to fathom that Alec might not be there later, to accompany him for the first steps into his new life, and that his eagerness to learn would only lead him to grief?

"I'm not interesting," Alec answered, deflecting the question with a joke. "You, on the other hand, will soon become the most interesting person in the world."

"What?" Magnus asked in amusement.

"The lost heir of Edom coming back home after years of being presumed dead?" Alec summed up the story, smiling, "This will make the headlines."

This time, Magnus paled and he looked up.

"R... really?" he stammered, before he thought of something. "Oh! Then you and Izzy will make the headlines with me! After all, _you_ brought me back. If it weren't for you, I..."

The young man abruptly shut up and he looked - no, _stared_ \- at Alec. While it wasn't unusual for them to fail at looking away from each other, Alec was surprised when he realised just of much emotion he could read in Magnus' eyes, veiled by tears of unabashed gratitude.

"Thank you," he told him, his voice suddenly rough. "Thank you for bringing me here. You... You could have ditched me in the middle of nowhere but you didn't."

"Why would I hav..." Alec started, until he was interrupted by Magnus' index on his lips, that he only removed once he was certain that the older man wouldn't speak.

"I was an ass," he merely explained with a shrug.

"I was an ass right back," Alec easily admitted, flashing a bright smile at the young man.

"Yeah, but you were driving," the latter laughed, his eyes sparkling. "Seriously, though... Thank you. You and Isabelle saved me. I don't know where I'd be without you two and..."

Alec cut him short with a kiss, both because he wanted to feel Magnus' lips against his own once more and because he didn't want to hear how thankful he was - it would only make the reality of their upcoming goodbyes more tangible. _Thank you and goodbye_. He wouldn't have it, not like that.

Instead, Alec gathered all his passion in a kiss, that he wanted slow and all the more pressing because of it, deep as the bond between their souls. He was in love and he couldn't confess it, not beyond the limits of his heart and mind, but he could use the silent language of his lips against Magnus', of his hands around his waist.

Alec felt the cold band of Magnus' ring on his cheek when the young man cupped his face, an anchor to his sad reality, far from the warmth of their kiss: the man he held in his arms, the man he loved was the heir to a crown that he could not wear for him. Magnus had finally found what he was looking for, a family and a place where he would belong... making Alec both overjoyed for him and desperate, too, because if he hadn't, there would have been a tiny possibility of having something with Magnus and _be_ something. If he had been given the chance, he would have grappled that possibility with all he had, everything he was, every single fibre of his being.

Yet, if he truly wished the best for the young man, Alec knew that he had to get away, leave, and let Magnus live the way he was born to.

  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! Please, feel free to share your opinions/questions/others in the comments! I'd love to know what you think about this!


	14. Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone! Thank you so much for your reactions on the previous chapter, it was quite emotional but you've made it so far, yay! I'll probably update the next chapter around Christmas Eve, you'll find out why in this chapter ;) Enjoy!

  


When Lilith suggested that the three of them had dinner and then spent the night at the mansion, Magnus immediately declined. It didn't come as too big a surprise to Alec and Izzy, who thought they understood his reasons: after the emotions of the day, Magnus certainly needed to retreat and regroup with the two people he had come to consider trustful fixtures in his life. Judging by Lilith's expression, she was both disappointed and relieved, since she was exhausted by this emotional rollercoaster as well, so they had no scruples about leaving.

"We have booked a room in town," Magnus justified himself nonetheless, wringing his hands in fear of upsetting his aunt, "and my cat is there too, he can't spend the night alone, so..."

"Magnus," Lilith interrupted him gently, her hands on his shoulders. "I understand. Don't worry."

The young man let out a breath, his shoulders sagging with relief, and he accepted a hug from his aunt with so much enthusiasm that Alec and Izzy smiled at the sight, the former a bit sadly, the latter with a bright grin that only dimmed when she noticed her brother's crestfallen face. She narrowed her eyes, as if trying to make Alec understand that he should be happy for Magnus, and his answering nod placated her. Of course he was. It was just hard to show it when half of his heart was missing.

"How about this, then," Lilith added, a spark in her eyes, "I'll come pick you up at ten tomorrow and we'll go shopping for the evening."

"Shopping?" Magnus repeated and blinked in surprise, "What... What's happening in the evening?"

"The traditional gala evening in Erchomai City," she explained. "Every Christmas Eve, my royal brother throws a Christmas party in collaboration with several charities that receive all profits from the evening. I can get you VIP invitations for dinner and the following shows... And then you could surprise Asmodeus."

A Christmas party at the palace... Alec almost laughed: focused on their travel as he'd been, his mind set on the threats that could come out of nowhere, and busy struggling with his feelings for Magnus, he had forgotten both about Christmas and the upcoming New Year celebrations. It felt strange, after years of laying low and days of being on the road and away from people, to finally go back to the normality of life... Somewhat.

"This will be the perfect Christmas gift," Isabelle said with a smile, shaking her brother out of his thoughts.

"Exactly, my dear," Lilith approved.

She caressed Magnus' cheek, smiling softly, and Alec saw the hesitation but genuine joy in the young man's gaze when he returned her smile.

"He's going to be so happy..." she added. "I can't wait to see my brother carefree again."

Alec glanced at Magnus, who was still smiling. His cheeks probably hurt by now and yet, he couldn't seem to stop, understandably so: if Magnus didn't smile on this blessed day, then he never would again.

After a little while, they said their goodbyes to Lilith, who didn't allow Magnus to leave without one more tight embrace nor without offering to call her chauffeur and ask him to drive them back to their hotel. They thanked her and eagerly accepted her suggestion, for they didn't feel up for a walk in the dark, now that the ghostly sun had disappeared from the winter sky.

As soon as they sat in the car, Magnus riding shotgun and the siblings on the backseat, Alec felt Izzy's hand sneak up to his own and she held on, squeezing his hand in silent support. While the day had been emotionally draining, especially for the younger member of their team, she knew just how much Alec suffered from the situation. Magnus too, probably, at least once he'd realise what his lineage meant for the both of them... For now, he was still high on the revelation that he had a family and for Magnus' own sake, Alec kind of hoped that this bliss would remain long enough to let him slip away without too much of a fuss. Although, knowing Magnus, it would certainly not be that easy...

He was strangely relieved when Magnus called dibs on the shower, back at the hotel, for it enabled Isabelle to wrap her big brother in a hug. Alec, tired of fighting his emotions, finally dropped the act and allowed himself to clutch at her sweater dress as he hugged her tight, the wool only adding to the comfort of their embrace. He wouldn't cry, because as much as he might need to, he knew all too well that if he started, he wouldn't stop. He had spent too long repressing way too many emotions and feelings, even unrelated to Magnus... If he broke down now, Magnus would come back in the room to a red-faced, puffy-eyed Alec and questions would rain on him, which he couldn't answer yet.

"Will you be alright?" Isabelle asked after a while.

"Eventually, yeah..." he told her, his voice quiet and tired. "I hope so."

Stepping back, he sat on one of the beds with a deep sigh that turned into a tiny yelp when Chairman Meow jumped on his lap and settled down, purring as he rubbed his head against the man's stomach. He wondered if the cat could feel his sadness and was trying to comfort him, just like his sister - and he tried not to think of how much he wanted Magnus to cuddle him instead of his cat.

"Do you want me to go outside for a little while?" Isabelle then suggested. "I can leave you the room if you want to talk to Magnus and..."

"I don't need to talk," Alec interrupted her, aware of what she was hinting at. "It's better if I don't tell him..."

"You can't just keep delaying it, Alec," Izzy chided him, "The more you wait, the harder it will be to tell him!"

"Who said I'd tell him anything?"

"What?!" she exclaimed, crossing her arms and frowning at him, "You mean... What, you won't explain why we're doing this? What led us here? How you feel about him? Then how do plan on staying with him? You can't just lie to him or _forget_ to tell him that..."

As Alec looked down, shame burning his cheeks, Isabelle stopped talking to stare at her brother instead. When he dared glance at her, he saw her disappointment and her sadness as clearly as if he'd painted them on her face himself.

"You don't plan on staying with him at all," she understood, accusation lacing her tone. "You're running away."

"I'm not running, Isabelle," Alec snapped as her words hit home, "I'm just doing what's right."

"How is leaving him right for either of you?" she shot back angrily, "You're making a mistake!"

"I don't deserve him!" her brother exclaimed, bothering Chairman Meow enough to make him jump down and hide underneath the bed, "Not after what happened to him!"

Isabelle closed her eyes and took a deep breath, as if to calm herself before she spoke again, unwilling to be too harsh with her brother. Alec was thankful for that, because he didn't need to fight with his sister on top of everything else.

"You were not responsible for what happened," she reminded him, "and you have nothing to blame yourself for. We brought him back, Alec, and he'll need you by his side to start this new life."

"He's strong," he whispered, "he doesn't need me."

"That's not what I mean and you know it," Izzy sighed. "Be as stubborn as you like, in the end you're just afraid of failing him. That's what's going to happen anyway, if you don't pull your head out of your ass."

Alec didn't answer. She was wrong. Wrong, wrong, wrong. Even if he stayed, Asmodeus wouldn't trust him. Magnus would hate him. What use was it to stay and break his heart even more, beyond repair this time?

"You told Lilith you weren't our father," Izzy added as an afterthought. "You'd do well to remember that."

Wrong, wrong, wrong.

  


  


As promised, Lilith's driver picked them up at ten o'clock sharp the next day, in a black SUV with tinted windows. Magnus felt like an overexcited kid as the man, who came by the name of Franck, opened the back door for him and he smiled a bit shyly once he realised that Lilith was already inside the car, while a bodyguard in a black suit, sitting in the front seat next to the driver, looked him up and down.

"H... Hi," he stammered, a bit taken aback.

"Hello, Magnus," Lilith answered, patting the seat at her left, "Come on, sit next to me..."

He did as he was told, feeling a bit awkward as he navigated the novelty of having a family - a powerful one at that. He looked forward to really getting to know his aunt but in the meantime, he was shy, almost scared to do something that would displease her. He still remembered how Alec and Izzy had told him, once, that being family didn't always make you friends but he really, really wanted to have the same kind of trustful relationship with his own family as the one the Lightwood siblings shared.

Although, he thought as they followed him inside the SUV, Alec seemed to be giving Izzy the cold shoulder since the previous evening. He didn't know why: some kind of argument must have broken out while he was showering but he had refrained from asking about it when he'd realised how tense Alexander was... He looked on the verge of breaking down and Magnus hadn't dared talk to him, for fear of being the one to finally make him cry - or yell.

Neither had he felt brave enough to join Alec in bed once Izzy was asleep, even though he would have wished for nothing else. Far from any naughty thought, he would just have liked to bask in the sensation of Alec's body against his own as a reminder of what they had and should preserve for as long as they could. Instead, he'd slept in his own bed with Chairman Meow curled on his belly and he'd heard Alec toss and turn for a while until he finally settled down and didn't make a noise anymore... Unless Magnus had fallen asleep before him?

Still, Alec didn't look well-rested right now, his eyes a bit red from the lack of sleep, but when Magnus glanced at him in worry, he only flashed him a wan smile. Was that supposed to reassure him?

"Where are we going, exactly?" Isabelle asked when the driver started the engine, once their bags were put inside the trunk and Chairman Meow was safely tucked inside Magnus' arms, looking grumpy at the prospect of travelling yet _again_.

"Erchomai City," Lilith answered, "Not only will you already be on location for tonight but this is also the perfect place to find the best fancy dresses for the evening."

"Not to be a party pooper," Magnus interfered, fidgeting a little, "but I'm not sure I can afford gala-appropriate clothing..."

Judging by Alec's sour face, he and his sister probably couldn't either. Magnus was a bit ashamed too, since he hadn't paid for a single thing during their journey, neither a meal nor a train ticket, nothing. He'd gathered, after everything, that Izzy and Alec hadn't spent their own money, Izzy was too good a thief for that, but it didn't feel right, with everything they'd done for him, not to give something in return. Not that the meagre income he'd had in Idris would help him in that regard but... Being royalty could change that, right?

"Don't worry, Magnus," Lilith reassured him, before she added, "All three of you, don't trouble yourselves with that... This day's expenses are on me."

"But we couldn't possibly..." Izzy started, but Magnus' aunt interrupted her before she could finish to refuse.

"No _but_ ," Lilith said. "Take it as a token of my gratitude for bringing Magnus back home. You'll have to discuss the rest of it with Asmodeus himself, though."

Magnus caught the way Alec stiffened at his aunt's words and he looked at him, tried to meet his eyes, in vain. If Magnus didn't know Alec, he could have thought that the older man looked apprehensive at the prospect of meeting the King... It couldn't be, though. Alec had planned on introducing Magnus to him from the start and nothing had changed since then, so... What?

Since Alec wasn't looking at him, Magnus took his time to stare at him while he tried to understand what was wrong with him. Alexander might not have a clue but Magnus had realised how odd he was behaving since the last evening and he... He worried. Had he done something to upset him? No, Alexander seemed mad at Izzy rather than him... He'd been pretty normal before that, while they were at Lilith's mansion and when they'd kissed on the perron, but by the time Magnus had finished showering at the hotel, the man had been glowering. What could have possibly happened in the span of fifteen minutes to make Alec so angry?

He was dying to ask, eager to help Alexander with whatever was on his mind, but he knew that this was neither the right place nor time. Maybe, if they could find a moment for themselves during the day... Although Magnus didn't have much hope: he wanted to make good use of this day to spend time with Lilith and get to know her better, which he wouldn't manage if he had to split himself in two. If his aunt's excited face was anything to go by, she too looked forward to this day in her nephew's company, and Magnus wouldn't be the one to get away from her. Not after all this time.

He would get an explanation out of Alec, though. Maybe not this day, maybe not that night, which promised to be an interesting and emotionally charged moment to go through, but later, when the excitement had died down a little and the shed tears had dried... He'd help Alec get his troubles out of his chest.

In the meantime, Magnus followed Alec's gaze outside the window. He'd noticed the night of their arrival in Edom that the scenery wasn't that different from Idris', at least not when the lands were covered in snow. He'd forgotten about Christmas before Lilith reminded them of it but now, he could feel the kindled excitement inside his chest: he'd never properly celebrated Christmas, for he'd had no family nor friends to gather with, and he couldn't say that he'd enjoyed the Christmas Eve tepid dinners during his years at the orphanage. The prospect of a Christmas gala for charity was much more entertaining.

Magnus' first look at Erchomai City left him speechless and he barely noticed Lilith's grin as he gaped at everything he could see on the other side of the window. It seemed as if the whole city had prepared for the gala evening, regardless of whether or not everyone was attending or even got invited: Christmas lights were already lit in spite of the early hour, people were hanging last-minute garlands around their windows with an air of busyness, others were unloading tons of brightly-wrapped gifts from their cars while Christmas carols echoed in the streets...

As they went farther into the heart of the city, they came across a queue of children and their parents waiting next to a sign with pictures of horse-drawn carriages, announcing the _Erchomai City Christmas Tour_. A few minutes later, they met one of these carriages, drawn by two dapple-gray horses whose mane and tail were adorned with white and red ribbons.

Magnus nearly jumped out of the car when Franck stopped, for he couldn't wait to be outside and stroll aimlessly through the streets of the city to come across more surprises, but Alec's hand around his arm kept him from wandering too far away from their little squad.

"Careful," he whispered, "Don't get lost."

Magnus smiled to hide the tremors of his body resulting from Alec's touch, even though it wasn't particularly tender, but ever since they'd kissed for the first time, it seemed that even the lightest press of Alec's skin on his own sent his heart in a frenzy. He sobered up quite quickly though, when he realised that the older man was scanning their surroundings, angling his body so that he stood between Magnus and the people who passed them by.

"You don't have to play bodyguard for me," Magnus mumbled, "I thought this was a day to enjoy ourselves."

"Doesn't mean I can't watch over you at the same time," Alec answered.

"Watch all you want," Magnus snickered, "I'm quite the sight."

"Royalty already getting to your head?" the other whispered in return, a smirk tugging at his lips, making Magnus' mouth go dry.

He didn't answer, which seemed to please Alec quite a lot, and a firm hand on his lower back steered him in the direction of a large street with dozens of stores displaying dresses and tuxedoes without any price tag, which he was grateful for: he was pretty sure he would have had a heart attack otherwise.

"My treat," Lilith reminded him, as if she'd read his mind.

Magnus nodded and then, the hunt began.

Truly, he had never thought it could be such a hard business to choose a tux for a gala evening - wasn't it enough to look all cleaned up? Apparently not, for it had to be spot-on, neither too flashy nor too classic, with only the right dash of eccentricity, and preferably promoting the work of local tailors - actually feeling comfortable in the tux was a bonus. After what felt like centuries, Magnus found a burgundy suit that seemed to fit his tastes as well as Lilith's standards and he was relieved, until his aunt told him they could get to the shoes now - and Izzy dared laugh at his misery.

He was forced to admit that the result was worth the effort though, for he looked... really good. He couldn't quite recognise his poor self from the days back in Idris: while his handsome face hadn't changed much, save for a few more signs of fatigue thanks to the journey, the tuxedo gave him a regal aspect and he suddenly wondered if he had been born to look like this. He certainly felt comfortable.

Surprisingly enough, Alec let the busy tailor shuffle around him and take measurements, grumble and click his tongue without protesting, and he quickly ended up with his own black, classic tuxedo. Magnus couldn't take his eyes off of the tall silhouette clad in fine clothing that enhanced his narrow waist and his wide shoulders, a delicate scarf of burgundy silk wrapped around his neck. Magnus tried very hard to ignore the fact that they matched.

"Close your mouth," Isabelle advised him on a low tone, close to giggling as she whispered in his ear.

"But he's hot," Magnus complained, still staring at the older man.

"Then, don't let him out of your sight tonight," his friend answered.

Magnus glanced at her suspiciously, for her phrasing sounded like a warning he should heed rather than a harmless joke. What did it mean? What was it with the Lightwoods and their strange behaviour, lately?!

He couldn't interrogate Isabelle because she got her turn too and when he saw how radiant she looked in her creamy and golden dress a few minutes later, Magnus ended up wondering if tailors were some sort of magicians or wizards. How else could this busy bee of a man turn three vagabonds in gorgeous gala attendees?

The question haunted him well into the afternoon, although he almost forgot about it during lunch as he tasted Edom's local specialities - the _Devil's horn_ was succulent - until Franck picked them up and drove them to a luxurious hotel that, according to Lilith, would be their accommodations for the rest of the afternoon and the night, should they decide not to stay at the palace.

Franck had dropped their bags into their rooms earlier that day and Magnus happily reunited with Chairman Meow, while Lilith watched the scene with a soft smile on her lips. She then turned toward Alec, who'd just finished examining the room like the perfect bodyguard he'd apparently decided to play, along with Lilith's own security detail. Magnus had gotten used to his antics during their travel but now that they were with his aunt, surely they were out of trouble and he could relax? No one had bothered them on the road, save for the man in the train, and that quietness sometimes made Magnus wonder if Alexander had not just imagined a threat where there was none... Not that he would say that to his face.

"Alec, this is for you," Lilith said, handing the young man a square envelope, "In case I don't make it tonight."

"What?" Magnus asked, bewildered, "You're not going with us?"

Lilith glanced at him and gave him a small, sad smile.

"I haven't attended such parties in a long, long time," she confessed, "because I never felt safe anymore after what happened to you. Also, I can't stand Lorenzo, who's always lurking in my brother's shadow. I might come tonight but if I don't... This letter will do the job for me."

"What does it say?" Alec asked even as he tucked the envelope in his pocket, resting his hand on it for a few seconds as if to make sure that it was there and safe.

"It is a handwritten letter that will grant you an audience with the King after the show. Give it to a member of the security detail and they'll come to take you to Asmodeus at the end of the party."

Alec nodded in assent, his face severe as he accepted the mission Lilith had entrusted him with; she smiled, pleased, and then she wheeled around to brush her knuckles against Magnus' cheekbone.

"If I don't see you tonight," she started, "we'll have to throw a family party at the mansion soon. You still have to meet your cousin, after all."

"Jonathan," Magnus said with a smile.

He remembered the picture of the pale and blond boy Alexander had showed him, just like he'd seen Lilith's and Lorenzo's. Now, however, he had the chance to meet these people in the flesh. At first, Magnus had been barely interested - at best - when Alec and Isabelle had started to teach him the names of Edom's royal family, for he felt like he was playing a role but now... They were his family. Not just faces on paper but real people with memories of him, with the same blood as his, and while he'd been scared to disappoint or be disappointed, this day with Lilith had made him feel more confident, both in himself and the people he could call family. Now, he was eager to meet them all and learn to appreciate them just as they were, like he had done with Lilith and she with him.

Meeting Asm... his _father_ would be the biggest step of the process, he knew that, and he truly hoped that the King would see in him the child he'd lost so many years ago. Meeting his father... It was a dream come true after many years of hoping and waiting and today, Magnus was ready. The time had come.

  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I guess you all know what's coming in the next chapter... Hang on tight! :)  
> Thank you for reading!


	15. Chapter 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I managed to impress myself by finishing this chapter on time. Way to go, myself! I hope you'll enjoy this chapter ;)

  


"I'm not ready," Magnus whimpered, clutching Alec's arm as they went up the white marble stairs that led to the palace, the red carpet underneath their feet welcoming them soundlessly in this universe Magnus really hoped he would fit in.

"Everything will be fine," Alec said, although he didn't sound much more convinced than Magnus had. "You'll see."

The young man glanced at Isabelle with an air of hopelessness and she merely laughed, although it didn't sound bright nor natural but rather tense. She was just as nervous as her brother and he were... He wasn't quite sure what to think of that: Alexander and Isabelle Lightwood, anxious? This didn't bode well. Maybe they should abort the mission before it even began, and definitely before it all went sideways.

Well, it was too late now, since they were on location already, beautiful in their tuxedoes and dress while journalists photographed every single one of the attendees. Magnus almost let out a hysterical laugh at the thought that they had no idea who they were - and maybe that was a good thing for now. Alec had told him about hitting the headlines once his identity would be made public and he didn't look forward to the many interviews he supposed he would be asked to give.

Currently though, the magnificence of the palace was a sight impressive enough to keep him focused on it rather than what the future held for him. The imposing palatial residence and the surrounding gardens made it seem as if art had never created anything more magnificent, and Magnus had not even gotten to see inside the edifice yet. He didn't doubt that it would blow his mind, for Lilith's mansion had already been quite the sight. This, though, the palace of the King himself? It promised to be even grander.

He was not mistaken: as soon as Alec, Izzy and he made their way inside, he discovered more marble, damask, rich furniture of mahogany marquetry and there were so many sumptuous details in every element of the decor that he nearly felt dizzy with the display of opulence.

Magnus only stopped gaping at everything when Alec left his side to whisper something to a security guard, to whom he handed the letter Lilith had given him earlier that day. Alec didn't let go of the envelope before the guard nodded to whatever it was the young man had said, making sure that his orders would be followed to a T, and he came back looking both satisfied and resigned. No, really, there was something fishy going on there...

Isabelle didn't offer him any opportunity to ask what was wrong with the siblings: in less than one second and without any warning, she'd put her hand on his forearm to drag him further inside the palace, in a wide room where all the guests were gathered around high bar tables covered with carmine velvet, while jazz music set a relaxed mood.

"This is the Great Gallery," Izzy told him, gesturing at the high ceiling and the crystal chandeliers above their heads. "This is amazing, isn't it?"

Magnus could only nod, his voice lost as he glanced at the people standing in the room along with them: they all seemed wealthy and their riches had clearly bought them impeccable clothing. With their sparkly dresses, gleaming jewels and expensive watches, Magnus certainly hoped they would donate loads of money to charities tonight...

While theirs didn't put Magnus' and his friends' clothes to shame - Lilith knew what she was doing after all - he quickly realised that these eccentric dresses were meant to catch the attention more than they were made to look classy.

"They all look so elegant and posh," he said with a laugh at Isabelle, who smiled, "I'm not sure anyone will notice us."

"Oh," she said, "Elegance is not about being noticed, Magnus. It's about being remembered."

Her amused smirk said enough about how much she thought they - and perhaps mostly _he_ \- would be remembered tonight. It wasn't easy to imagine, for a young man who'd spent most of his life in the shadows... The prospect of stepping into the light was a scary one but if he had Isabelle and Alexander by his side... It suddenly seemed a lot less frightening.

"I'm glad you're here with me," he told them in earnest, glancing from one sibling to the other, catching Izzy's soft gaze and Alec's... weird frown.

"I'll get us something to drink," the older man quickly said, excusing himself as he left in a hurry.

That wasn't strange at all.

"Is he all right?" Magnus asked Izzy, his expression stuck somewhere between offense and concern. "He's been odd, lately."

"I don't know what you mean," she whispered - but she didn't look innocent enough for Magnus to believe her blatant lie.

"Tell me the truth," he demanded, "Did I do something?"

Izzy seemed to deflate. She searched for her brother's tall silhouette in the crowd and when she didn't see him anywhere close, she leaned in closer to Magnus.

"He's nervous about tonight," she told him in hushed words, "It's... a big deal for him, you know that."

"Yes," Magnus agreed, perfectly recalling their conversation about how much finding the heir to Edom mattered to Alec, although he still had no idea why. "That doesn't mean he has to be a twat."

Isabelle snorted, which sort of made him feel better, but then she became more serious than he'd ever seen her and he tensed, expecting some sort of backlash for badmouthing her brother... It never came, though.

"He's acting a bit strangely," she admitted, "but please, don't think it is your fault. Alec has his own fears to fight and sometimes, what he fears the most is himself. Magnus, whatever happens, you must remember that he cares a lot about you."

"I... I never doubted that," Magnus stammered.

His voice came out a bit hoarse, as if was on the verge of crying. He wasn't. He just... felt like Izzy's words were a warning for something that he wouldn't like but would come anyway. By chance, he didn't have to analyse that feeling in any more depth, because Alec conveniently came back with three flutes of Champagne skilfully balanced in his hands, just in time for the music to switch from jazz to something more solemn.

"The King arrives," Alec whispered in his ear.

Thankfully, he misunderstood the shiver of desire that shook Magnus' body for sudden fear, although he wasn't completely mistaken: spikes of actual apprehension were burning through his veins as several people entered the Great Gallery by the entrance opposite to the one he and his friends had gone through. Magnus immediately recognised one of them, his neat ponytail and goatee making him look just a tiny bit too polished.

"That's Lorenzo," Alec said uselessly, still on the same low tone. "The others are advisors to Asmodeus... Here he comes."

Magnus gripped Alec's sleeve when the King came into the room to enthusiastic applause, and his eyes zeroed into the man dressed in a dark suit and walking with the help of an elegant cane. The sight immediately worried him: that cane didn't look like a fashionable accessory, since Asmodeus clearly had to lean on it to move forward, but even though his steps were slow rather than calm, they were also determined. Slowly, almost afraid to look, Magnus' eyes travelled from the King's cane up to his hand, firm but not clenched, to his shoulder, relaxed even as he faced hundreds of people, and then, finally, to his face.

Magnus sucked in a gasp. Shaking, he covered his mouth with his hand to contain any cry, while his eyelids battled to keep tears at bay, his heart beating fast as emotion overwhelmed him. He _knew_ him. This was nothing like looking at a photograph and distantly thinking _this could be my father_ , no: it was knowing, with absolute certainty, and remembering. Memories like broken pieces of a puzzle, blurry but there all the same. A pair of strong arms catching him around his waist and giggling during a game of hide-and-seek. Hiding in the closet during his father's cabinet meetings and suddenly springing out of it to scream _boo!_ and having everyone pretend not to have noticed the kid before and jump in feigned fright.

Magnus' heart broke and pieced itself back together a thousand times as the King, his father, waved at his guests once, before he sat on a comfortable-looking chair, aided by his cane as well as one of his advisors. How much he had suffered, waiting for him... If only Magnus had remembered his past! He could have come back earlier, he could have avoided so much pain on both his and his father's side... As well as his mother's, who wasn't there anymore. She would never know that her husband and son had eventually reunited.

The young man didn't notice when someone tugged on his sleeve and guided him somewhere else, away from the Great Gallery, but he followed without even thinking and when he blinked, he found himself in a hallway, alone with Alexander.

"You are crying," Alec said softly, before Magnus could even ask for an explanation.

Startled, he brought his fingers to his eyes and blinked in surprise when they came away a bit wet. He hadn't realised...

"Will you be alright?" Alec asked, still gentle.

Magnus nodded, a bit too feverishly perhaps, and Alec lifted his hand slowly, looking hesitant to touch the younger man's face. When he placed his palm on his cheek though, Magnus leaned into the touch, revelling in it. He craved Alec's every touch, his warmth and his presence, and he was glad to have him by his side in this very moment.

"I'm fine," he eventually croaked out, wiping his eyes one more time to erase any evidence of tears. "It's just very... intense."

Alec pulled his hand away, looking a bit concerned, but he didn't question Magnus on the truth in his words: was he really as fine as he said he was? Or was he just trying not to make him worry too much? Magnus himself couldn't say. Maybe once he'd met his father, he would know what to tell Alec. Speaking of the King...

"He's sick, isn't he?" Magnus suddenly but quietly asked. "My father?"

Alec didn't seem surprised by the question, as if he'd expected Magnus to catch on this, and he nodded. The fact that his face folded into an expression of sadness didn't make Magnus' heart stop with mad worry at all. Suddenly, he remembered Underhill's passing comment about Lorenzo taking over Asmodeus' duties whenever the King felt too tired to assume his responsibilities. Now that he'd actually seen the King, he understood that remark a lot better but it also raised more questions.

"H... how bad is it?" he enquired, aware that his voice was wobbly. "Are we... Will we be on borrowed time? Tell me the truth."

"I don't know," Alec confessed. "The King never made any official statement and speculation has spread, so much that it's hard to gather solid facts. If you listen to some people, he... he doesn't have much time anymore."

Alec bit his lips, watching Magnus closely as he rubbed at his eyes furiously.

"I lost so much time," he whispered, sounding just as broken as he felt inside. "I should have come back earlier."

"You couldn't know," Alec reminded him, "You can't blame yourself."

Magnus nodded, although he didn't answer. There was nothing to add anyway.

  


  


Alec kept glancing at Magnus in worry during the whole evening, even though the younger man had collected himself after their talk and seemed in control of his emotions enough to visibly enjoy the shows as well as the food they were served. Magnus especially enjoyed the piano recital, while Alec tried to ignore the way their elbows were brushing one another. He couldn't allow himself to enjoy these touches anymore. He'd already gone in too deep for far too long and he... he had to stop. It was only a matter of time before it all ended and he should be ready for it, no matter how much he wanted to hold Magnus' hand or let every touch linger.

He got a brutal reminder of that truth when, barely fifteen minutes after the end of the representations, a security guard with a grim face came to tap Alec on the shoulder and tell him that he and his friends were expected in the King's study. A quick glance at the other end of the Great Gallery revealed that yes, Asmodeus and the court had already retired. Next to him, he heard Magnus' breath itch.

"Lead the way," Alec told the guard.

He felt his own nervousness increase tenfold as he glanced at Magnus and at his sister, who knew just how much this exact instant mattered to him. The younger man was already following the security guard when Izzy's hand on his shoulder, holding him back ever so slightly, halted his own pace.

"Go without me," she said out of the blue, her voice barely above a whisper to make sure no one else than her brother would hear her.

"What?" he murmured, stunned, "No! Why?"

"Because this is your last chance to tell Magnus the truth before his father reveals it all to him," she answered, "and his version probably won't be the same as ours. So go and do it before it's too late."

She pushed him forward then, ignoring his protestations, and he had no other choice but to fall into step next to Magnus, who immediately grabbed his hand and squeezed it like his life depended on it. Alec tried to fight the urge, he really did, but he still ended up squeezing Magnus' hand right back as they went through a daedal labyrinth of corridors and rooms that certainly had the younger man's head spinning, while the path seemed more familiar to Alec, who remembered it far better. After all, Magnus had only been five years old the last time he'd walked these hallways.

Glancing at Magnus, noticing his clenched teeth and his overall tense attitude, Alec decided to shrug off Izzy's warning. The younger man didn't need this right now... He would hear soon enough everything he had to know anyway.

"You may go in," the security guard told them when they arrived in front of the closed door of the study. "He is waiting for you."

Alec nodded and didn't give himself the time to doubt before he clenched his hand around the bronze doorknob, but Magnus' distressed voice halted his gesture:

"No, wait, Alexander!"

"What?" he asked, turning around.

"I... I can't," Magnus stammered, "It's..."

"Too much?" Alec guessed, letting go of the knob to properly face his friend.

Magnus nodded, anguish keeping him from saying anything, and Alec took his hand.

"You'll be okay," he reminded him. "Asmodeus has been waiting for this as long as you have."

"I know," Magnus whispered, attempting to swallow the hard lump of fear lodged in his throat, "Could you... Could you go in first? I'll just... calm down a little and then... I'll join you."

"Are you certain?" Alec enquired, just to be sure, not ready nor eager to leave Magnus on his own to panic.

"Positive," the other answered, even managing a smile that he hoped reassuring, although it came out as rather resigned.

"Okay," Alec eventually decided, squeezing Magnus' fingers one last time. "Remember: you've got this. I'll be right on the other side."

Magnus nodded with obvious relief and Alec took the time to gaze at him for a few seconds, to make sure that he would remember the young man's every single feature once they would be apart, so he could dream of him night and day alike. With one last longing stare, he turned around and firmly gripped the doorknob to walk into the King's study, making sure to leave the door slightly ajar so that Magnus could hear what was going on inside the study and decide of the best moment to join them. Alec then wheeled around, ready to bow in front of the King and greet him following proper etiquette, but he froze at the sight he was met with.

Asmodeus wasn't there.

In his stead, Lorenzo stood before Alec, flanked by two of the advisors he'd seen earlier in the evening, as well as two bodyguards. Armed ones, positioned on either side of the advisors and the Prince, one next to a desk and the other beside the fireplace, where a merry fire was crackling. They looked sombre but Lorenzo himself had a dangerous expression of joy on his face, that Alec wouldn't mistake for anything genuine: the Prince's body seemed to be vibrating with barely controlled anger.

"Alexander Lightwood," he seethed, "Long time no see."

"Prince Lorenzo," Alec carefully acknowledged him.

He resisted the urge to glance behind his own shoulder and at the door, focusing on the five people in the study, but an odd presentiment had suddenly seized him and he regretted, when faced with the two security guards and their threatening expressions, not to have his gun close.

"I was supposed to meet the King," he said, his tone clipped. "If he is unwell..."

"The King has retired for the night already," Lorenzo told him on a sweet tone that Alec didn't trust, "He doesn't know of _our_ meeting."

"What?" the young man exclaimed. "I specifically asked for a letter to be deliv..."

"This letter?" one of the advisors, whose name Alec didn't know, interrupted him as he took a folded sheet of paper out of his pocket and waved it with a smirk. "I might have had something to do with the fact that the King hasn't read it... Contrarily to us."

"What the hell?!" he snapped, "This letter was written by Princess Lilith herself, you had no right to intercept her correspondence with her own brother!"

He gaped when the advisor shrugged and took one step closer to the fire, before he threw the letter in the flames, that quickly licked at the paper and destroyed it in a short instant. Alec stepped back, the bad feeling in his guts growing more and more with each passing second. What the hell was going on at Edom's royal court?

"So you've found my long lost cousin," Lorenzo said, paying no attention to Alec's inner turmoil. "Congratulations. How relieving, freeing, it must be for you... and _especially _for your family."__

____

"So you understand why the King must be warned immediately," Alec shot back without rising to the bait. "Magnus is really looking forward to meet him and..."

Lorenzo chuckled.

" _Magnus_. Yes, Lilith mentioned in her letter that it was his name, now. How's your father, Alec? Does he know you found him?"

Alec didn't answer. He didn't know what game Lorenzo was playing right now but he didn't like it one bit.

"Does he know," the Prince added, a glimmer of sadistic pleasure in his eyes, "that you accomplished the very mission he failed at?"

"I haven't spoken to my father in years," Alec growled, "and this is not the point! Call the King and..."

"Now, why would I do that?" Lorenzo asked with an incredulous laugh. "It is far more enjoyable to have this discussion with you. Your father must be so proud, Alec! Imagine... You spent years looking for the right boy, the one you would be able to manipulate and control until he was persuaded that he was the one true heir to Edom and now... Now, this is it!"

"It's not like that," Alec protested, "Magnus _is_ Asmodeus' son!"

"So I've heard, yes!" Lorenzo spat out, "It seems that you got lucky, in the end, and the boy you chose turned out to really be my cousin. Which is another problem, that we'll deal with later. But tell me, Alec..."

At the dark look in the Prince's eyes, the young man stepped back and he didn't miss the way the two bodyguards advanced on him. He should leave. Leave, grab Magnus' hand and find another way to meet with Asmodeus. This... this whole situation... It wasn't going to end well. He was sure of it.

"What did you promise him?" Lorenzo asked, finishing his previous sentence.

Alec's brows furrowed and he didn't answer, not sure to understand the actual question. What had he promised... Magnus?

"What did you say to persuade him to play the part, before he knew?" Lorenzo added, his voice full of venom as he attacked the younger man, who didn't know how to react to the suddenness of the situation. "Did you tell him you would share with him the reward Asmodeus promised for his son? One million certainly is a solid way to convince people to do whatever you want... Or did you tell him the sad story of the Lightwood family, how your father had one job and couldn't even do it properly? Did you tell him that he was an incompetent bastard, a Keeper who couldn't even keep a five-year-old kid safe and was responsible for his kidnapping? For his ruined life as well as yours?"

"Shut up!" Alec snarled, finally breaking out of his stupor, "Shut up!"

And he launched himself at Lorenzo.

  


  


Outside the study, Magnus took a step back. He blinked in shock, Lorenzo's words spinning in his head. He couldn't believe it. Asmodeus had promised a reward of one million for whoever brought his son back and... That was it. They'd done it for the money, not for _Magnus_ , who'd fallen for their lies. He had been so desperate to go to Edom and find out who he was that he'd jumped with both feet into their trap!

The betrayal hurt deep inside him, blurring his sight as he turned around and walked away from the study. He wouldn't cry though, not for them. Not for Alec who'd lied to him since the beginning, not for Izzy who'd nourished her brother's tales, no matter how she claimed she wasn't as invested as him. For one million, who wouldn't be?

They'd done it for the money, for their father's honour maybe, but not for him. Their friendship was a lie. _Everything_ was a lie.

As he crossed the Great Gallery in long, furious and pained strides, he thought he heard Isabelle's voice, shouting his name in worry, asking him to stop and wait for her. She didn't know that _he_ knew now... He didn't confront her. Didn't even feel like doing it. He just wanted to be left alone...

The cruel truth hit him, then. He didn't need to be left alone: he had always been on his own, even when he'd thought he wasn't.

  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Muhahaha, merry Christmas everyone! See you soon!


	16. Chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy New Year everyone! I wish you all a good year, made of good surprises and daily positivity! On that note, I leave you with this chapter that... might not be super happy. Oops :)

  


Alec grunted when his head was slammed into the wall of the study, giving him an extremely close look at the gilded wood some panels of the room were made of. Beautiful work, although he couldn't admire it for long since one of the bodyguards who'd jumped at him to defend Lorenzo twisted his arm behind his back. The man earned himself a cry of pain from Alec when his nails dug into the young man's flesh, still sensitive from the knife wound he'd received not so long ago... The bandage he'd kept out of habit barely dimmed the pain.

He tried to push back, to move his free arm to punch the security guard in the nose and hopefully break it, but the sound of a gun safety being taken off instantly calmed him down. When he glanced behind his shoulder, craning his neck as much as he could while trying to make himself look as unthreatening as possible, he realised that the second bodyguard was aiming his gun at his head.

"Enough!" Lorenzo exclaimed then, his anger clear, "Enough!"

For a second, no one moved, neither the advisors who'd stepped back in fright when Alec had tried to attack the Prince, nor the bodyguards, waiting for further commands. If Alec didn't blink, perhaps he had a chance not to be killed on the spot.

"I am very disappointed in you, Alec," Lorenzo tutted, curling the end of his ponytail around his index finger in a gesture that betrayed his trouble.

Alec smirked, his smile deformed by the wall he was still pressed against: for all his bravado, Lorenzo had been just as scared as the royal advisors when Alec had charged him. Good. He should be: Lightwoods didn't let themselves be insulted without punishment.

"Disappointed?" Alec snarled at him, "What should I say, then? I came to see the King and all I get is some lousy prince who thinks he can mock me... and two advisors who are keeping the King away from his son! What do you think Asmodeus will do when he hears about it, uh? He'll..."

"He won't know anything about what happened tonight," Lorenzo interrupted him, a large smile blooming on his lips right before it turned into a clear threat. "This will be our little secret, won't it, Alec?"

"If you think I'm going to give up now and keep Magnus hidden, you're sorely mistaken," he growled, then cried out as the bodyguard behind his back tightened his grip on his arm in disapproval of his tone.

Lorenzo let out a deep sigh, as if sorry to hear Alec's words, and he approached the young man, bending down to look him in the eyes. In spite of his superior attitude, Alec noticed that he hadn't dared come too close... So he wasn't a complete fool: Lorenzo remembered how dangerous Lightwoods could be, even in dire situations.

"Wrong answer, Alec," he told him while shaking his head. "Pity, really. You're not making it easy for me... nor for yourself."

That last part wasn't comforting at all and Alec squirmed a little against the bodyguard's hold, who only ended up pushing his head harder into the wall. Alec stopped struggling when he saw white.

"W... Why?" he uttered, stalling for time as he waited to regain the full use of his eyesight and find a way to break free of the guard. "Why are you doing this? Magnus is your cousin and the rightful heir to the throne of Edom, you should be calling for the King at once!"

"Oh, Alec," Lorenzo chuckled. "Lightwoods may be brave and intrepid, but they definitively are lacking something between the ears, don't you think? Let me tell you my little secret... It's exactly because of _who_ he is that I do what I do."

Alec's eyes widened as sudden understanding dawned on him. No... Surely, he was misinterpreting the Prince's words. It couldn't be. There was no way he was plotting the King's demise and planned on taking the throne for himself. But what if he was? Then, Magnus' ill-timed return would ruin his scheme and the prospect of such failure could be enough to justify keeping Lilith's letter away from the King's eyes - and, consequently, his own son.

He had to think before screaming treason. Lilith had shared with the Lightwoods her dislike of Lorenzo, could it be that this knowledge was misleading him, playing tricks on his mind so he jumped to conclusions without solid evidence? That wouldn't explain why Lorenzo had said he wasn't informing the King on purpose, though... That, on the contrary, only served to strengthen Alec's assumptions about his plans. He had to know for sure.

"How many court members have you corrupted into following you, then?" Alec rasped, setting his eyes on the two advisors, who glanced at each other in unease at the accusation.

"Enough to veto Jonathan in the Council and secure my own access to the throne once it is time," Lorenzo answered with a grin, confirming part of Alec's suspicions in the process.

"You bastard!" he growled, fidgeting again beneath the bodyguard's hands, "You're going to kill Asmodeus?"

To his utter disbelief, the Prince started to laugh at that, throwing his head back while his hands flew to his stomach, as if his hilarity would end up hurting him. His question wasn't that preposterous, Alec thought, offended. Lorenzo could very well have it in him.

"That wouldn't be very refined now, would it?" the Prince said once he'd calmed down enough to align two words without cackling. "I won't even have to. The King's illness will take care of that for me. _Magnus_ , though... He's still a nobody. No one would shed a tear if he mysteriously happened to disappear... Same goes for you."

"You can't do that!" Alec exclaimed in distress.

He wasn't worried about his own life, though: the mere thought of these guards going out to kill Magnus nearly sent him into full panic mode and he finally snapped, twisting his body quickly enough to take the man holding him by surprise and spin him to use him as a shield against his colleague's gun. Pulling the man along, he tried to reach the door, praying that Magnus had heard everything and was already running away, but he didn't manage to get there in time: the security guard suddenly kicked him in the knee, making him howl in pain, while an elbow to the ribs and another sharp blow to his head took him down. When he came to, barely a few seconds later, the muzzle of a gun was staring at him.

"Alec, Alec, Alec..." Lorenzo chanted in annoyance. "You don't stand a chance against me, boy. I've worked too hard for too long to allow a miserable worm such as you to ruin my efforts. Your father should have understood that when we first started making plans."

"W...we?" Alec gasped, his aching ribs making it hard to speak - and even to breathe. "Who's _we_?"

He wasn't certain that Lorenzo was using a majestic plural, he seemed to love himself too much to hide his little person underneath it, so could it be that he wasn't the only mastermind behind that plot to seize the throne and rule the kingdom? Then, who could be his accomplice in the creation of this horrible plan? Not the advisors, surely: to Alec, they seemed like followers, not leaders. Who could have been behind all this?

Whether Lorenzo had read his mind or Alec's questions were written all over his face, the Prince laughed as if he'd understood every single one of his thoughts.

"I shouldn't be telling you this," he chuckled, "but since that knowledge will die with you anyway, I guess it can't hurt."

Alec glared at him and he viciously hoped that Lorenzo would give in to the need of hearing himself talk and relishing into the sound of his own voice, that he'd speak his mind without inhibitions, and then Alec would make sure to survive everything he would throw his way... He would make Lorenzo regret spilling the beans so thoroughly, no matter how long it would take. He'd waited fifteen years to find Asmodeus' son. He knew patience.

"My father has always had big plans for me," Lorenzo told him, seemingly out of the blue. "He knew he'd never be King, since he wasn't from the right bloodline, but he had me, and it was perfect, because Asmodeus was childless... Until he wasn't anymore."

Alec narrowed his eyes, a horrible suspicion making bile rise in his throat at the Prince's words. Lorenzo couldn't possibly mean that...

"It was quite simple," he continued, unaware that Alec was already starting to put two and two together. "Thanks to his position on the Council, my father knew everything about the little Prince's security detail, so when Asmodeus decided to go to Idris, my father saw the chance to act."

"Your father was behind all this?" Alec gaped.

It was... unfathomable. A betrayal, still going on after fifteen years... How could no one have realised that Lorenzo's family was far from loyal to the Crown? How had they not slipped up and revealed their treason over the past years?

"Robert Lightwood never saw it coming," Lorenzo added, a mad glimmer in his gaze that said much about his lack of regrets, even on his father's behalf. "Imagine! One night in Idris, a guard comes knocking on the Crown Prince's door, wearing Edom's colours, pretending to have an urgent message for the Keeper. Robert didn't know he couldn't trust the very men he shared a uniform with."

A cold fury rose inside Alec at the words, making his head spin, and he suddenly wanted nothing but to strangle Lorenzo with his bare hands. He could do it, he knew that. He could kill that man and he was already certain that he wouldn't let remorse haunt him afterwards, not for men of Lorenzo's kind.

If Alec had been less furious, less upset, the thought would have scared him. Right then though, there was only anger, burning hot in his veins, and nothing but the gun pointed at his forehead kept him from leaping to his feet to catch Lorenzo around the neck, although it certainly didn't tame his want to do so. It didn't even matter that Lorenzo's father, not him directly, was responsible for Magnus' kidnapping: he could kill the son for the father, they both deserved it.

Alec didn't need to _imagine_ what had happened that night fifteen years ago. Robert had told him enough about the complete powerlessness, the absolute shame as he failed to protect the one person he had been supposed never to look away from. He knew the story. He'd heard it out of his father's mouth enough times to feel the same fear he'd felt, the same crushing guilt, an identical sense of failure that he had to fix. He _understood_ , for the responsibility had been engraved in his head, tattooed in the flesh of his neck.

He had blamed Idris though, just like Asmodeus, like Robert, like the whole nation, while Lorenzo's father probably laughed at their stupidity and carefully stayed in the King's shadow, waiting for his son's time. He'd died a few years ago, as Alec had learned from Underhill on one of their rare meetings, but his plans had not died with him.

"It must have been so easy," Alec eventually growled, glaring at Lorenzo, "for your father to organise the kidnapping, betray a good man, and then put the blame on Idris. Easy as well as cowardly."

"Bold," Lorenzo corrected him with a proud smile, "Bold and intelligent, evil if you like, but definitively not _easy_. Easy would have been killing the boy and putting my father's mind at ease. It wasn't easy to hear that this stupid driver managed to crash his car into a tree, leaving us with the fear of seeing the kid turn up at some point and find the culprits standing in the same room as him."

"He never did, though," Alec said with a smirk, "and you thought you would be okay. Guess what, Lorenzo: you've lost. Magnus is here, Lilith knows about him and even if you kill me tonight, Asmodeus will hear about his son. You go on and get rid of me, I don't care. You're over."

As bad as his situation was, on his knees and only a few inches away from death, Alec couldn't fight the triumphant smile that crept on his face. It slipped though, when Lorenzo started to laugh, and then it vanished completely.

"Don't worry!" the renegade Prince exclaimed. "I'll take care of Lilith soon enough. You and _Magnus_ are so much more important right now... Don't you want to hear the rest of the story first, though? So you can die knowing everything that is going to happen to your dear friend?"

Alec didn't answer, only glared a bit more. He knew that even if he answered no, Lorenzo would still tell him: he was enjoying this way too much, delighted at the prospect of torturing Alec's mind with the details of his sick plan. He couldn't help but feel hopeful, however. Lorenzo had mentioned Magnus and him but he had apparently failed to notice that there weren't only the two of them... He seemed to have forgotten about Izzy and Alec was grateful for that: undetected, she could save them all.

The young man tried to keep his expression neutral, just this side of murderous, so that no one would catch on the flicker of hope he felt inside him. He shouldn't have worried though, because Lorenzo was already talking again, and Alec tried to imagine him on the throne before he shuddered. He would make a terrible King, self-centred, seeking only his own wealth and power rather than the good of the people. A tyrant.

"... kept an eye on you," Lorenzo was saying when Alec tuned him in again. "We knew you'd come up with a boy you would bend to your will until he could pass as the lost Crown Prince. When he saw you at the Hunter's Moon, my man immediately noticed the similarities between the child we'd lost and the young man you were talking to... Aware of what you would do next, he tried to stop you."

"That guy on the train..." Alec understood, suddenly remembering the fight and Izzy's fateful intervention, and on Lorenzo's nod, he added, "I should have hit him harder, then."

The Prince snorted.

"He underestimated you. He had you right there, he could have killed you... But in the end, it wasn't necessary to strike at that time. We knew you'd come here, eventually, and all we had to do was to wait."

That explained why they hadn't fallen into any other trap on their way to Edom, Alec thought bitterly. It had seemed strange at the time but then, he and Izzy had decided to be glad for that odd tranquillity - and Alec had been too busy dealing with his feelings for Magnus to take the time to think of what foe this calm could hide. Now he knew and he realised that he'd been stupid to let his guard down. He should have understood earlier. Then again, he hadn't expected Magnus' own cousin to be the villain of the story.

"And now I'm here," he said in a sigh, half-resigned and half-proud, raising his head in defiance.

"Indeed, you are..." Lorenzo answered softly, stroking his goatee. "Right on time for Magnus' downfall."

"You'll never get to him," Alec snarled, "not while I live!"

"Ah, the Keeper in you surfaces..." Lorenzo drawled. "Just like your father. I would hate for you to break your oath, so... You'll die first. I could kill Magnus before you, make you _watch_ , but you're too dangerous alive."

With a flick of his fingers to the bodyguard still aiming at Alec's face, Lorenzo turned around, disinteresting himself from anything related to his enemy, deeming himself far above that. Alec didn't patiently wait for the bullet to tear him apart, though: he pounced on the guard, grabbing at his waist to pull him down, and the gunshot echoed somewhere next to his right ear, stunning him for a second or two.

He distantly heard one of the advisors yell and he hoped, with all the anger in his heart, that the wayward bullet had hurt him, although he didn't have the time to check as he rolled on the floor with the guard, hands curling into tight fists and aiming for the stomach. He missed but so did the man when he tried to knock him out using his gun. Alec's hands scrambled for it and a victorious smile curled his lips when he finally managed to grab the guard's wrist and press down on the tendons, until he dropped the gun.

"Kill him!" Lorenzo shouted to the second guard, screaming himself hoarse as he realised just how fast the situation was turning to his disadvantage. "Kill him, now!"

Alec didn't bother to stay long enough for that to happen, thank you very much. Fingers tightly clutching onto the bodyguard's jacket, the young man pulled him to his feet and held him in front of his body, his own arm sneaking around the man's neck and squeezing the breath out of his throat, cutting his oxygen access.

"Don't shoot!" he yelled as he carefully stepped back with the bodyguard, his eyes glancing from the advisors' scared faces to Lorenzo's furious one, "He'll die before me!"

The other guard froze, clearly unwilling to do anything that could push Alec's buttons and make him strangle his colleague for real, but Alec couldn't say for sure that Lorenzo wouldn't order him to shoot anyway - he wouldn't put it past him. Seizing the momentary stillness of everyone involved, he stepped backwards with a few long strides and leaned his back against the door of the room to push it open, re-emerging into the hallway. There was no sign of Magnus and Alec let out a sigh of relief at the thought that he'd run when he heard Lorenzo's threats against him. Good. No one would touch a hair on Magnus' head, not while he was still breathing.

Now he had to find him, find Izzy, and get out of there.

As soon as he stepped out of the study, Alec let go of the useless bodyguard and threw him back into the room, just in time to make him crash into the second guard, who collapsed under the unexpected weight of his gasping colleague. The young man didn't linger one more millisecond: he ran.

He darted down the hallway, half of his thoughts going to Magnus and his sister while the other half went to Lilith and her boy, whom he hoped were safe in their mansion. Alec heard a cry behind him, probably Lorenzo screaming at his goons to catch him, and he ran faster while resetting his list of priorities. Find Magnus and Izzy, who were hopefully together already if Magnus had told her about what he'd heard, get out and warn Lilith, possibly not in that order, and find a way to talk to Asmodeus... if Lorenzo wasn't faster than them and didn't make up some sort of lie to keep Asmodeus from granting them any audience.

Still, he had an advantage, Alec thought, skidding to a stop as he entered the Great Gallery one more time, slowing down so as not to seem suspicious to the other guests. He knew everything about Lorenzo's treason and if he managed to tell the King all about it, maybe...

His thoughts were interrupted when he caught sight of his sister, looking beautiful in her dress but also anxious, her eyes nervously travelling around the large room until, by total chance, they settled on Alec. She all but ran to him.

"What happened?" she worried, her dismay showing as she took a good look at his dishevelled appearance, his creased tux and his no doubt swollen cheek.

"Later," he said, grabbing her hand to lead her out of the Gallery, "We need to leave, now. Where's Magnus?"

"I don't know," Izzy answered, now sounding distressed as she realised that something was really wrong, "I saw him leave the Great Gallery maybe fifteen minutes ago, he didn't stop when I called. Alec, _what_ happened?"

Fifteen... The young man stopped, suddenly paling, feeling like he was going to be sick. Shit. Shit, shit, shit.

"He... he knows," Alec stammered, turning toward his sister as it dawned on him which part of his conversation with Lorenzo Magnus might have caught. "He heard... about the reward. And our father."

"What? How?"

"Isabelle, that's not important right now!" Alec exclaimed, horrified to realise that he was starting to panic. "Lorenzo wants him dead! He wants all of us dead! You, Magnus, and Lilith... He was behind this from the start!"

"Alec, what are you saying?" Isabelle asked, her wide eyes refusing to understand the implications of her brother's words.

"We don't have time for the details," Alec blurted as he scanned their surroundings, looking for Magnus, who was nowhere in sight. "Not now. We have to split up, find Magnus and leave. Take the West wing, I'll take the East one."

Not giving the time to react to his sister but trusting her to do her part, he ran into the hallway on his right, turning around one last time to yell:

"Call Lilith! Tell her to be careful even around her guards!"

Then he was off, heart and mind focused on one mission: saving Magnus.

  


  


"Rhaaaa!" Magnus screamed, slamming his palm against the wall of whatever room he was standing in, allowing his anger and his hurt to get the best of him - he deemed himself lucky that the security guards of the palace had apparently all been charged with watching the Great Gallery: he didn't want to imagine what would have happened if they'd found him throwing a fit.

He wasn't crying, since he had promised himself that he wouldn't, but he had to give some way out to the emotions that were threatening to swallow him, driving him mad the more he dwelled on them. Alec and Izzy had played him - and played him well at that - and he would have wanted to hurt them just as much as they'd hurt him, except that... except that he hated himself at the mere thought of doing anything to the siblings.

He loved them. He had found his first friend in Isabelle and so much more into Alec and now... His very soul ached at the reminder of their treason. Salt burned at his eyes and he angrily rubbed at them until he saw white spirals behind his eyelids. When he reopened his eyes, he startled at the sight of Alec, the one person he never wanted to see again, standing on the threshold of the room.

"Magnus..." Alec started softly, his hand outstretched, beckoning him over.

Twenty minutes ago, he would have snuggled into to him with a smile, wishing for nothing but to feel these arms around his waist, these large hands splayed across his back or his shoulders. Now, he could only do one thing: ignoring Alec, he looked away and left the room through the door on the other side.

"Magnus!"

At the sound of fast footsteps behind him, Magnus quickened his own pace, until he was running. He didn't know where he was going, he only knew that he had to get away from Alec, go as far from him as he could, and he went through rooms and corridors one after the other, completely losing sense of direction, until he stormed outside, in a courtyard of the palace.

"Magnus! Stop!"

He didn't. He nearly slipped on the snow covering the cobblestones when he tried to go faster, but he didn't stop. He didn't want to... didn't want to fall for the lies, for Alec, more than he already had.

"Magnus!" Alec tried again, "Please, wait!"

Maybe it was the inflection of despair in his voice that eventually halted him. Maybe it was pure masochism, because Magnus intimately knew that he would never be able to resist Alec, nor one last chance to see his face and lose himself in his eyes. Or maybe it was the sudden thought that if someone had to run, to feel ashamed, then it was not Magnus but Alec himself. So he stopped and turned around, facing Alec. He stared at him, his stomach twisting into angry knots. Why would he even follow him, want to talk to him? What did he have to say? Did he want to offer lame apologies? It would be useless. Magnus wouldn't buy them.

"You lied to me, Alexander," he seethed instead of maintaining the cold silence he had first aimed for - it felt like opening a dam and he ended up screaming. "You lied to me!"

"Please, Magnus," Alec said with urgency, although he didn't deny that he'd lied, "We can discuss this somewhere else, somewhere safer. You can't stay here, it's too dangerous!"

Magnus wasn't sure to understand where that danger suddenly came from but when Alec's hand found its way to his shoulder, he slapped it away and took a step back, trying to put some distance between them, for the sake of his own heart.

"Why should I believe you?" he asked, his voice coming out as cold as he felt inside. "You lied to me. You've been lying from the start! You said you wanted to help me!

"I did!" Alec assured him, "I brought you here, didn't I?"

His open hand showed him the courtyard, the windows of the palace above, and Magnus knew there was more to it. They had travelled to this place together, yes, and somehow Alec had also made his way into Magnus' heart. He couldn't even be sure that the opposite was true as well, not anymore, not with what he'd overheard behind that door.

"You brought me here, that's true," the younger man eventually acknowledged Alec's actions, "but you did it all for the money! Or was it out of misplaced guilt?"

"That is not true!" Alec denied, although he seemed to think that Magnus had a point, and he added very softly, "I promise I'll tell you everything but not here. We have to leave, _now_."

_Everything_... Magnus wasn't sure that he wanted to learn everything there was to know. He didn't think he wanted to hear just how Alec had played with his heart.

"What else did you lie about?" he asked, hating the vulnerability in his voice, "What we shared... Was it even real?"

Magnus stared at Alec, waiting for an answer with his heart beating too fast and his breath ragged, afraid of facing new disappointments. He didn't expect Alec to say yes, even though that would be the answer he was hoping for. He had to be realistic. All the other man had wanted was to get his reward and he hadn't hesitated to make a fool out of Magnus for it.

Alec didn't answer in either way though. Instead, his whole body tensed as his attention shifted from Magnus' eyes to his chest. Brows arching up, the younger man wanted to say something, probably some scathing comment about Alec's lack of honesty, but he didn't have the time to unleash his fury.

Instead, Alec closed the distance between them and Magnus didn't understand what was happening, except that Alec wrapped his body around him before there was a loud noise, a gasp coming from Alec's lips, and a sharp pain in his back as he fell backwards, collapsing under Alec's suddenly boneless body. Something warm dripped onto his hands, onto his chest, and when he squirmed to free one of his arms from between their bodies, his hand was red. Before his brain could understand, instinctive panic had already hit.

"Alexander... No!" he screamed, his hand shooting out to cup Alec's pale face, smearing blood across his cheeks as his head lolled between his fingers with a whimper. "Stay with me, you idiot, why did you... Please, please, stay with me! Alexander!"

Alec had already closed his eyes. Terrified, Magnus tried to pat his cheek to wake him up, but then he realised that it might only make things worse and he froze, holding Alexander close to him. No, no, no! He had tried to tell him that they couldn't stay there and Magnus, forgetting how much he'd usually trust Alec in the midst of his pain and his anger, had not listened. He wanted to scream, get to his feet and call for help, but if a shooter was hiding in the shadows, he knew he wouldn't make it but would end up a lifeless body next to Alec and... No, no, he wasn't dead, he wasn't, _couldn't_ , he was strong and...

"Alec! Magnus!" someone suddenly yelled.

Magnus couldn't turn his head fast enough at the cry and he suddenly saw Isabelle, standing near the closest corner of the courtyard, looking at them in horror. The young man let out a breath at the sight of her as his panic turned into relief, before it promptly went back to panic.

"Izzy, stop!" Magnus screamed before she could take one more step, "There's a shooter somewhere!"

He saw her glance from them to the rooftops, in the opposite direction, and to his surprise she raised two guns to the sky. Where had she...

"Get up," she instructed him, "Come my way. I'll cover you."

Magnus didn't question her, seeing only salvation in her where he hadn't been able to see anything beyond Alec's blood before. Carefully disentangling himself from Alec's still body, Magnus did his best not to move him as he rolled to the side and got up, a lump stuck in his throat.

"Run!" Isabelle screamed, before she started shooting.

He jumped in fright, expecting to be shot at just as Alec had been - for him, he'd taken the bullet for _him_ \- but Izzy's relentless shooting kept him from harm long enough for him to scurry for cover underneath the arches of the courtyard, by Izzy's side. She immediately put her hand on his neck, forcing him to duck, and she pulled him farther away, back inside the palace.

"What are you doing?!" he shouted, "We can't leave Alexander there, he's wounded!"

"I know," she answered curtly, her face blanching, "I'll go back for him. I have to take you to safety first."

"No!" he screamed, "Please, please, we can't leave him there, Isabelle, he's... He's bleeding, he needs help!"

When he tried to turn around and flee from her grasp, she growled and slammed him against a wall, her palm flat against his chest.

"I know!" she exclaimed, her eyes wild. "I _know_ , Magnus, don't think that I don't care about my _brother_! I know he's hurt but I also know that Alec would kill me if I let anything happen to you after he sacrificed himself _for_ you!"

Stunned into silence, Magnus helplessly stared at Isabelle, at the painful despair in her eyes that he'd missed, lost in his own terror. He nodded and she slowly let him go, before she led him away once more. He let himself be manhandled until she opened a door and pushed him inside a room, while she remained outside.

"Stay here," she said, "Don't move. I'll take care of Alec. Then I'll come back for you."

Isabelle didn't wait for his answer, betraying the fear for her brother that she hid so well by sprinting back in direction of the courtyard, where Alexander was slowly bleeding out. Magnus covered his mouth with a trembling hand when a ugly, broken sob pushed its way out of his throat and he stepped back, bumping into furniture he was oblivious to, until his shoulders roughly hit the hard wooden panel of a wall. As his sobs grew louder, Magnus slid down until he was crouching in a corner. Then, finally, he started to cry.

  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! Your support means everything to me so thank you for still following these Malec adventures! Until next time!


	17. Chapter 17

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I thought I'd never get to the end of this chapter but here it is at last! I hope you'll enjoy it :)

  


Magnus couldn't tell how much time had passed since Isabelle had left him alone in this room - a sort of salon, he realised after a while, if the couch and the individual plush upholstered armchairs around a small table were anything to go by. At some point, he'd considered standing up to sit on one of these comfortable-looking seats but he'd felt too exhausted and nervous to even attempt to move. Isabelle had told him to stay put. He didn't know how long ago.

She wasn't back yet, even though it had been... hours, probably. If he'd been able to focus, perhaps he could have estimated how much time he'd waited on his own already but he couldn't concentrate on anything but three crucial and cruel moments that were playing in his mind on a loop. His distressed accusations of lying, addressed to Alec. Alexander's blood on his fingertips. Izzy's cold self-control as she brought him to safety - away from _him_.

Magnus shivered and wrapped his arms tightly around himself. He wasn't even cold and still, his whole body was shaking in the aftermath of shock, had been for a while now, a more violent shudder rocking his shrinking form from time to time as he tried to blend in with the wall.

He closed his eyes, muffling his whimpers into his bent knees while he clutched at his hair, slightly wet with melted snow. He thought he'd heard sirens, some time ago, but he didn't know whether that had been the police or an ambulance. He hoped for the latter, hoped they'd taken care of Alec, hoped they hadn't arrived too late to save him. He _had_ to live.

Magnus gritted his teeth when fresh tears spilled over. He'd promised himself before that he wouldn't cry for Alec, that he didn't deserve Magnus' sadness, but now it was different because he could be dying, far from Magnus, who would be none the wiser because he was alone, as he'd always been, and maybe Izzy wouldn't even come back for him. She belonged with her brother, after all. Magnus would even understand that she didn't want to talk to him anymore: she'd told him before, how she wished Alec could live his own life without ties to Edom's royal family, she'd hoped he would move on, give up on his family's responsibilities and live for himself... And now Alec had a hole in his chest, because he had wanted to protect Magnus.

It only rendered the situation more confusing, more painful. If Alec really had cared about the money and only that, why take his place, shove him away and take a bullet for him? Dying wouldn't give him the opportunity to enjoy his reward in the slightest. The only plausible conclusion was that he'd shielded Magnus with his own body because he had _wanted_ to. Magnus didn't know what to make of it. Could it be that everything he'd heard from Lorenzo's mouth was a lie? Had he really been so quick to turn his back on Alec, to believe a perfect stranger instead of the man he'd grown to love? Lorenzo was family, however, his own cousin, and Magnus couldn't fathom a proper explanation to his lies. Why would he distort the truth?

It seemed like an endless, vicious cycle: he'd trusted Alexander with his life so far and he would be glad to learn that Lorenzo had lied instead of Alec but then, what would that mean for Magnus and his cousin? That he couldn't trust his own family? Or maybe it had been a mistake, a misunderstanding and nothing more... If it wasn't though, it would break Magnus thoroughly that the feelings he'd thought Alec had for him turned out to be nothing at all.

The young man heaved a deep sigh, his breath coming out shaky. He couldn't stay there with his thoughts anymore, he needed to move or do something, see someone, anything to keep his mind off Alec's condition and the overall terrible way this evening had come down. He hadn't even met his father... Had Lorenzo refused to believe Alec when he'd said he had come with Asmodeus' son? What about Lilith's letter, though? Surely Lorenzo knew he could trust her...

Magnus abruptly stood up, staggering on his feet as his blood started to run through his legs again after they'd begun cramping up. He massaged his thighs for a moment, sniffled once, and then he carefully opened the door of the salon, ready to move back inside if he spotted anyone. He couldn't forget about the sniper who'd tried to kill him and had shot Alec instead... Someone had wanted him dead - and that didn't make sense either: nobody knew who he was, so why attack him?

To his immense relief, the corridor was empty: there was no sign of guards, not even of Isabelle, but only a deserted hallway for Magnus to walk down. He hesitated, standing on the threshold, trying to remember which way Izzy and he had come from when she'd led him there... He didn't exactly want to go back to the courtyard and its bloody snow.

When it became clear that he couldn’t recognise the patterns on the walls or anything from his surroundings, stressed as he'd been when he'd first passed them, Magnus randomly turned right and decided to face whoever he'd eventually meet calmly. Nothing could be worse than the sight of Alec lying, lifeless, in the snow.

Magnus ended up, he didn't quite know how, climbing stairs of marble covered in red velvet, eyeing the tapestries on the walls on either side of the staircase to try and understand what story they were telling. That of his family? Or did it show one of those stories, stuff of legends really, that spoke of a past when Edom was roaming with demons until the first King, founder of Magnus' dynasty, arrived and tamed them? He couldn't be sure, because he didn't see any winged, horny beast crawling underneath the hooves of the knights' horses that were depicted on the tapestries, but who knew? Demons didn't have to look like monsters.

The young man kept moving, mostly allowing his feet to go as they pleased, until he pushed a door open - and stopped dead in his tracks. He didn't know what he had expected or hoped to find - Asmodeus himself, perhaps, or even a kind staff member who would tell him what had happened to Alec - but he had not seen this coming.

_This_ , was a bedroom. Wide and certainly luminous during the day, thanks to the large windows on the opposite wall, and the light orange that painted the room should have felt welcoming and warm, even, except that Magnus only felt cold ice run down his back at the sight.

He stared with mixed emotions at the friendly-looking giraffes stickers on one of the walls, next to lions and zebras, all turned so that their cartoony eyes were set in the direction of a small bed, covered by a sheet that was grey with dust. More greying, old sheets had been thrown over a wardrobe, a bedside table with an abandoned book of fairytales, toy baskets still full, and what truly got to Magnus was the dog plushie that he could see on the bed, beneath the white sheet where the pillow should have been, as if it waited for its kid's embrace.

Magnus gasped when he understood, when he realised... where he was and why it seemed like the bedroom had been abandoned overnight, just as if someone had lived there and then vanished completely, leaving everything as it was - because it had happened exactly like this. This bedroom used to be his own, with his toys and his clothes, until someone had shattered the peacefulness of the life he shared with his parents, until his mere memory was too painful to bear for them, until neither of them entered that room anymore for fear of deepening the ache in their soul, caused by the loss of their only child.

Magnus abruptly stepped back, banging in the door jamb in the process when his sudden distress turned him clumsy and he swore as he walked away, hurrying down the corridor. In his haste, he'd left the door open but he couldn't bring himself to turn around and close it again on this ghost of himself. He couldn't bear the sight of this bedroom, _his_ bedroom, that he couldn't exactly recognise but that he felt should have only awaken good emotions instead of making him feel like a mangled and incomplete man, one who'd lost his childhood and part of himself at the same time.

Eventually, Magnus stumbled in another room. He was glad to find that this one felt well lived-in and full of happier and fresher memories and his delight only grew when he caught sight of a piano, large and silent by the window. Slowly, he closed the distance between the instrument and him, carefully stretching his arm to brush his fingertips over the fallboard, the solidity of the wood beneath his fingers strangely reassuring after this mad evening. Magnus eventually plopped down onto the bench and quietly contemplated the piano, his exhaustion finally catching up to him and leaving him unwilling to move on with his exploration of the palace.

He still had no idea of how Alec was faring or where Izzy was, or even why he hadn't seen his father yet. In spite of his fears and questions though, he knew he wouldn't be able to focus on them and fight off the fatigue any longer. He should have long gone back to the more frequented - and public - areas of the palace but... wasn't he home? Didn't he have the right to sit in this room and enjoy its quietness for a little while? What else could he do anyway?

He didn't have a phone to call Lilith, Izzy hadn't come back for him, Asmodeus apparently didn't know he was there, so close and yet so far away, someone wanted him dead and Alec... No, Magnus didn't want to go there. It would only deepen the sorrow and grief he already felt, raw inside him.

The sudden but soft sound of footsteps approaching startled the young man and he tensed, turning his head toward the door. He stayed quiet and still, not knowing who was coming, although he got an inkling when he realised that each of the hesitant footsteps was followed by a somewhat louder sound, that of a cane on which a man was leaning heavily, and Magnus' heart went mad.

Asmodeus entered the room haltingly, a pace that had nothing to do with his need for support but everything with Magnus' presence that the King was clearly aware of. The young man first noticed the guarded but hopeful expression on his father's face, as if he couldn't quite believe his eyes, that were brimming with gleaming tears. Magnus wasn't faring any better, to be honest: there was a difference between seeing the King from afar, amidst the crowd, during an official event and facing his father in the privacy of a music room. Now, it felt real.

As Asmodeus stared at him in awe, Magnus found himself doing the same, each examining the other as if they were walking straight out of a dream, but neither said anything. The silence was deep, although not heavy, until the younger man stammered:

"How... how did you find me?"

He immediately felt awkward, asking that question: surely he should have thought of something better to say? What, though? They were family but they also were perfect strangers, a father and a son who had been apart for more than fifteen years... Words felt wrong, like they were not enough, but the hug Magnus would have wanted to go for would be too early, uncomfortable.

"Cameras," Asmodeus answered in spite of Magnus' doubts, his voice rough, wet with emotion he still managed to keep a leash on - a voice with a soft edge, although the younger man had no doubt that voice knew how to be obeyed as well. "Security followed your path... After Isabelle Lightwood told me I should look for you in the first place."

Oh. So she _had_ found the King and told him about his son. Was that after she'd gotten help for Alec? He hoped so, with all his heart.

"It was... strangely fitting, to find you here," Asmodeus slowly revealed, as he nodded toward the piano. "Your mother used to play and you... You would sit beside her and listen to her for hours."

Magnus blinked as a feeling of deep loss invaded him, in the odd company of happiness. He had missed so much over the past fifteen years and there was so much of his life before he was five years old that he had lost forever and yet, seeing his father standing across the room, he thought that maybe it could be okay, that maybe he didn't have to leave it at that. He had a full life ahead of him now, one where he would fit and know who he really was, and perhaps with Asmodeus' memories, his mother would not remain a faceless ghost.

"I don't remember her," he felt compelled to warn the King, mumbling the words while he stared at the piano in shame, trying to imagine how her fingers had looked on the keyboard. "There is... quite a lot that I don't remember, actually. I'll probably never will."

"Miss Lightwood told me as much," Asmodeus said with a nod, sounding pained, "but I'll remember her for you."

"Doesn't it bother you?" Magnus blurted out, his need to ask overwhelming, even though it also paralysed him with fear, "I'm here but I'm also... not just as you expected me to be."

Asmodeus kept quiet for a while, contemplating Magnus' words as much as he observed his son. Eventually, a small smile crept on his face and he used his cane to show the piano bench and the empty spot next to Magnus.

"May I?" he asked.

The implications of that question were many and Magnus understood them all. He nodded fervently, his hands shaking as his father came close. How long had he waited for this? Fifteen bloody years. He should have been ready, after all this time... However, when Asmodeus slowly sat next to him, he felt faint, a bit groggy, like a man who had just woken up from a deep dream and couldn't yet tell reality and fantasy apart. Magnus wanted to hold onto the King's sleeve to make sure that he was solid, real, and that he wouldn't vanish into nothingness at any given moment.

"I had no expectations," Asmodeus said gently in answer to his question. "I... I nearly gave up the search, you know? The Lightwoods are not the only ones who tried to bring me _someone_ and wanted me to recognise him as my son... Each time, I was disappointed and hurt more deeply as my hopes died one after the other. In the end, I refused to meet any of these men who pretended to be you... But now you're here. This is more than I thought I would ever get and memories or not, it doesn't change that simple fact: you're _here_ , with me."

Asmodeus reached out, his hand hovering above Magnus' own, but he didn't touch him. Did the King share his son's fear? Was he afraid that if he attempted to hold Magnus' hand, his fingers would close around nothing but thin air?

"How... How can you be sure that I'm the one you've been waiting for?" the younger man stammered.

He was certain himself, for he had Lilith's assurance that no one outside of the royal family would know about the Keepers and their mark, not to mention his own sensation of familiarity when he looked at Asmodeus. Did the King feel it too?

"It is enough to look at you," Asmodeus confessed quietly, before he seemed to gather his courage and took Magnus' hand in his own. "There is this, too..."

The younger man looked down at the ring on his finger, that Asmodeus was staring at unblinking, as if mesmerised. Magnus glanced from one to the other hesitantly. Days ago, he'd asked Alexander if perhaps the A engraved on the ring could be the King's initial and he'd said that he didn't think so but now, judging by Asmodeus' softening, faraway gaze, Magnus wasn't so sure that Alec had been right.

"This ring used to be mine," the King said softly, tracing the edges of the jewel on Magnus' finger. "It was, until I gave it to my son. He was a young boy, my most precious treasure, and he hated it when I couldn't stay home to play with him but had to attend meetings instead... Thus I gave him this ring, so that he could stare at it while we were apart, and remember that I would always, always come back to him. This ring is yet another proof, if I needed one, of your true identity. You are my son, Magnus, and you came back to me."

Magnus let out a broken sob of relief when he heard the words he'd longed to hear for so many years and he didn't ponder his next move before he leaned forward. Asmodeus opened his arms wide, just as eager as his son to feel him close, and Magnus let himself be held and comforted in his father's embrace. They were both crying in silence, none of them caring, as they shared their first hug in fifteen years. Magnus' fear of awkwardness passed quickly, for his father's trembling hands on his back felt right.

It was hard to let go then, the possibility of this reunion being but a dream still lingering on their minds, and they chuckled wetly at their equal reluctance to break apart. The soft knock on the door that came next forced them to, however.

"Your Majesty, Your Highness," a guard said as he stepped into the music room but kept his distances, "Pardon the intrusion but we have an update on the situation, Sire. Beta Team caught the sniper, police forces are escorting him out of the premises and into a cell as we speak."

"Thank you, Stephen," Asmodeus answered lightly, the greater part of his attention set on his son rather than on this new development, despite its importance. "I trust the police will keep it under wraps for now?"

"Yes, Sire," the man confirmed, "although they will need to speak to you tomorrow morning, as early as you can manage to meet with them."

"Thank you," the King repeated, which Stephen understood as a dismissal.

Magnus watched him go with wide eyes. He couldn't quite believe his ears, the news of the sniper's arrest going almost unnoticed as the guard's previous address rang in his head.

"Your Highness?" he repeated in a squeak. "Was he... talking to me? How does he know already that..."

"Stephen is the head of my personal security detail," Asmodeus explained, "and he was by my side, as always, when Miss Lightwood explained the situation to me. No one else knows, yet. I believe you might want it to go on for a few days before any official announcement is made?"

"Yes, yes, it's probably best I get used to this first..." Magnus babbled, until he caught on the second part of Stephen's message, "Wait, the sniper! How did _he_ know? Are you in danger too? Who was he? Why did he want to kill me?"

"I will explain everything in detail later, I promise," his father swore, resting his hand on Magnus'. "You should rest first, though. You have been through so much and if Alec Lightwood had not been there..."

"How is he?" Magnus quickly asked, interrupting his father without even noticing as much, "Do we have any update on his condition as well? I need to know if... if..."

He couldn't say any more, his throat closing up on a tight ball of pain and fear as he imagined the possible outcome to the courtyard scene. Alexander couldn't leave him alone, not now, when he had so many explanations to give and Magnus, so many apologies...

"Ah, yes..." Asmodeus whispered, as if he was answering one of his own silent questions, "Isabelle Lightwood told me you and her brother were sort of... involved?"

There was only questioning in the King's voice, no judgement but curiosity and hesitation regarding the term he should use to talk about his son's relation to Alec, and Magnus didn't stop to think of what his father might say about his bisexuality. For a long time, it had been the only thing he was certain of and he wouldn't hide it now that everything else had become sure, too. However, he couldn't find the words to tell him what they were, for he didn't even know where Alexander and he stood anymore.

"I'm in love with him," Magnus whispered instead of trying to describe what they were and meant to each other.

And he did, he really did. It didn't even matter whether Alec had been saying the truth earlier or not, even his treason wouldn't change the fact that Magnus loved him to pieces. His lies made his feelings more painful but certainly not less strong and he honestly doubted that anything could. Magnus might have followed the Lightwoods into Edom to find his origins but at the end of the journey, he had found friendship, love and family, both by blood and by heart. If he lost Alexander now... He knew this journey would end with bitterness and a feeling of uselessness: he wanted, needed Alec by his side to explore this new life he was offered.

"I... I'm in love with him," he repeated in a weak murmur, his sight getting blurry all over again as he blurted out, "and I'm mad at him or... or I _was_ , because he lied to me, but then the idiot had to go and get himself _shot_ for me and... What if I never see him again? What if he dies thinking that I hate him? I yelled at him, I was so hurt and angry and... I don't want him to die, father!"

It slipped without Magnus' notice, an instinctive cry for comfort from his family, and Asmodeus' own eyes were wet when he wrapped his arms around his son once more. Slowly, he ran his fingers through Magnus' wild hair and kissed the top of his head.

"If there is anything left from the sweet but stubborn kid I used to know," the King started, freeing one his hands to lift Magnus' chin up and look into his eyes, "Alexander will pull through. Then you, my beautiful boy, will be able to tell him everything you want to tell him."

Magnus nodded, his broken heart still managing to soar with happiness at his father's acceptance and reassurance, and he leaned into Asmodeus' touch when he laid his hand on his cheek. He found himself closing his eyes, wishing that they would get to live the future his father foresaw, and he chose to believe that they would. It was the first time he received support from a parent and he was aware that Asmodeus couldn't keep that promise himself, that he only wanted Magnus to feel better and that Alec's health didn't depend on him, but... This once, just this once, he prayed for it to become true.

Alexander _had_ to live.

  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading this story so far, your continued support means the world to me <3


	18. Chapter 18

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I thought I would never get to the end of this chapter but here it is at last! Thank you for your patience, I'm still sick but I'm getting a bit better every day! I hope you will enjoy this chapter!

  


The world was grey. Cold, as if thick snow had covered everything he once knew, but the sight wasn't white and blinding like winter sceneries. It wasn't black either, it wasn't the darkness he was used to see whenever he closed his eyes. The world was grey. In between. Like him.

Alec knew that a choice was offered to him, between light and darkness, between life and death. He didn't want to die. He still had many deeds to accomplish. Sincere apologies, if he was brave enough; heartfelt declarations, if he dared open himself; tearful goodbyes and remorseful departures, if he couldn't stay. And then, a new life to build from scratch.

Maybe it didn't sound that appealing, phrased like this... But Alec wouldn't have turned to the other side to make it easier for himself: he would have blown the very ground he was standing on to make things right and right, in this instance, meant going back. To Izzy, to Magnus, to himself.

Mostly to Magnus, who deserved a proper explanation. _For_ Magnus, who'd trusted him until he started to think that Alec had acted only because of ulterior motives - which he'd had, at the very beginning, but now it almost made him sick to think that way. All he wanted was to part ways with Magnus knowing that he had been right to entrust Alec with... everything: his future, his safety, his heart. He _had_ to go back.

Alec opened his eyes.

  


  


The first time he woke up, Alec recognised the room he was in without trouble, although his vision was awfully blurry: hospital room. A nice one at that, private and comfortable, based on the soft pillow underneath his head that were propping him up. Less enjoyable was the heaviness of his body and the veil before his eyes or even the dim ache pulsing through his chest. Painful but also weird, because he couldn't feel it as acutely as he should have... They'd given him something, hadn't they? He wasn't high on drugs but he was definitely feeling a bit funny. Good. Waking up full of pain would certainly be a terrible experience.

Far more pleasant was the warmth around his left hand but when he blinked, his eyes detected movement on his right and he turned his head.

"Alec?" Isabelle whispered in question, until her face lit up. "Alec, you're awake!"

He winced at the volume of her voice, opened his mouth and tried to speak, only to emit some sort of hoarse grumble - painful, too.

"Don't talk," she enjoined him when she saw him frown, "just shake your head, yes or no. Do you understand?"

Alec nodded.

"Good. Do you remember what happened?"

Alec nodded again and he didn't miss the relief on his sister's face. She'd probably feared brain injury, memory loss, disorientation. She didn't need to worry though: he remembered everything with awful acuteness, the betrayal on Magnus' face, his shouts, his body beneath his own as he protected him, his distress as Alec slipped into unconsciousness... Thinking back to that night in the snowy courtyard was enough to start a headache though, unless that was the exhaustion speaking: he wanted to close his eyes and sleep...

"I'll call for a nurse to check on you," Isabelle was saying when he managed to refocus on her for more than one second at a time. "You should rest."

Lying in a bed and feeling like he would throw up if he moved a finger, Alec didn't really have any other choice than to comply and rest. Still, one question was haunting him.

"M... Ma..." he started, quickly growing frustrated when he realised that he couldn't yet use his voice properly, "Mag..."

He wanted to bring his hand to his throat in order to massage it, relieve some of the pain that seemed to have been caused by a thousand needles forced down his throat, but even his arms felt heavy and too difficult to move, not to mention that his brain probably wasn't properly connected to his muscles right now.

"Magnus?" Isabelle interpreted. "He's right there, you big idiot."

She jerked her head to his left and when he slowly set his eyes in that direction, relief flooded his whole body. If he hadn't been lying down already, he'd have probably collapsed on the spot. Fast asleep but still holding onto his hand was Magnus, hair greasy and cheeks more hollow than he remembered, as if he hadn't been taking care of himself for the past few days. Speaking of which, how long had Alec been out? How long had Magnus stayed by his side like this? The importance and the meaning of the younger man's presence by his side suddenly hit him, right as his eyes closed against his will: if Magnus was there...

It meant he still had a shot at forgiveness.

  


  


The second time he woke up, feeling marginally better albeit still exhausted, he couldn't see Isabelle anywhere: she seemed to have been replaced by a nurse checking his vitals and grumbling about firearms and bullet wounds. However, Magnus was awake and quite determined on explaining to Alec just how much he'd worried about him during the past few days - which, as it turned out, amounted to four.

"You bloody idiot!" he seethed once the nurse monitoring him was gone, knowing that he couldn't scream in order to preserve Alec's delicate condition, "You... You absolute dumbass! What the hell did you think you were doing?!"

Alec shrugged, a painful move, but Magnus didn't seem to notice. He was too mad for that, as it seemed, for he kept on glaring and spouting insults mixed with reproaches. Alec would have thought saving his life would guarantee him some sort of gratitude, maybe a few tears, preferably followed by an emotional kiss. That would have been way better.

"I thought you were dead!" Magnus exclaimed, "That you'd died on me, in my arms, and I..."

The young man suddenly grew quiet, his breath stuck in his throat, and he deflated. Alec looked at him in worry as he paled - all things considered, he preferred when Magnus was whisper-shouting at him in anger.

"I could have lost you," he murmured, his eyes filled with tears. "I... I don't want to live with this fear ever again. I can't lose you."

Alec's heart gave a painful squeeze and he had to close his eyes for a few seconds. Magnus had no idea... He hadn't yet realised that they would be apart anyway, because of their respective roles to play. Magnus' role definitively pushed him in a direction that would never meet Alec's... He was royalty, now, wasn't he? In which future could they not lose each other?

Now that he thought about it, Alec wasn't even sure that Magnus had met Asmodeus already: he hadn't asked - wasn't given the time - and Magnus had not mentioned anything from that night save for Alec's _incredibly stupid move_ to protect him.

"What was I supposed to do?" he rasped out, "Let you die?"

Magnus shut up, his eyes wide. What, had he not thought about it from that angle? Now who was the bloody idiot? Seizing the opportunity to speak since Magnus had been stunned into silence, Alec cleared his throat. He didn't know how long his voice would remain strong enough to be heard and he really, really had a lot to say to the younger man, so he would need to be quick. As quick as this kind of conversation made it possible, anyway.

"I'm not sorry for saving your life," he started as firmly as he could manage, "so you shouldn't expect any apology for that."

Magnus didn't say anything, only glared a bit, as if he couldn't believe Alec's cheek. The ghost of tears in his eyes kind of ruined the effect, though. Alec wanted to grab his hand and bring him the comfort he so clearly needed but after everything that had gone down between them, he wasn't sure to be allowed this privilege anymore.

"But..." Alec said again, to Magnus' surprise, "there are many other things I should apologise for."

The younger man looked away, biting his lip, and for a second Alec grew scared that Magnus would not even want to listen to him, that he had been hurt too deeply by his actions. How could he ever redeem himself to Magnus' eyes? He would do anything, he knew that already, there would not be too great a sacrifice he would consent to, not if it meant earning Magnus' trust again.

"Let's not talk about this now," Magnus said, surprising Alec who let out a shaky breath of relief at the prospect of a _later_ together. "I... I don't want to hear it."

"I need to, though," Alec whispered quietly. "I've... I've hurt you, don't deny it. You don't have to pretend to be invulnerable."

"I wasn't trying to," Magnus admitted, "but you just woke up. You shouldn't have to discuss this matter now, you have to rest first."

He would rest much later, once Magnus left him. Once he'd be alone with his thoughts, his mistakes and his regrets, alone to lament his fate: bringing the lost heir home should have meant the end of his troubles, of his family's, and yet it mostly meant the ruin of his heart.

"Have you met with Asmodeus?" Alec asked.

The sudden beaming expression on Magnus' face answered his question efficiently enough, not to mention that the younger man nodded with overeager enthusiasm, his eyes full of light. Good. Magnus would be happy now, free from the constant burden of wondering who he was and where he belonged, free to be himself around a loving father who would, no doubt, dote on Magnus to make up for the lost years. At least Alec would not have broken their hearts in vain.

"I'll tell you later," the young man promised, "Now, rest."

As if.

"I didn't do this for the money," Alec blurted out before Magnus could tell him to go to sleep once more, "You should know that first of all."

"Alexander..."

"Please," he said, almost desperate, bold enough to take Magnus' hand this time around, "Let me. I know I have my wrongs but I have to tell you... You need to know."

"Promise me you'll rest afterward," Magnus prompted.

Alec nodded, Magnus gave in, and suddenly the words were hard to find, the shame of them weighing on his shoulders. He could not hold them back any longer though, the time had now come to be brave. He owed it to Magnus.

"Izzy and I knew about the reward," he whispered, "and yes, I'll admit, at first we were only looking for someone to play a role, _your_ role, and we thought we'd get the money and that would be it. Partly. We... had a personal, familial interest too."

"Your father," Magnus guessed.

Oh. Right. He'd heard what Lorenzo had to say about Robert, of course. That he'd failed, that he had been an inadequate, incompetent Keeper... It had been true, in a way, although Alec had always refused to consider his own father like a failure, even when Izzy agreed that he hadn't fulfilled his mission in life, neither as a Keeper nor as a father. Well he hadn't, obviously, but Alec had never blamed him for that and he wouldn't start now that he had learned more about the circumstances surrounding Magnus' kidnapping as a child.

"Lightwoods have always been the Keepers of the royal family," Alec explained quietly, already feeling his vocal cords straining with the effort of making himself heard. "When you disappeared, of course your father blamed mine - he had every reason to, after all. He was fired and exiled. Nearly ran away himself, to be honest. My father felt guilty, so he tried to track you down. Never managed to..."

"So you decided to find me yourself," Magnus concluded, rightly so.

Alec nodded weakly, closing his eyes for a second. He reopened them when he felt a soft pressure on the left side of his neck, careful and tender, warm on his skin. Only then did he realise that being in the hospital also meant wearing the infamous hospital gown, which left his throat bare, exposing his tattoo. So much for keeping it hidden... He couldn't bring himself to push Magnus' hand away though: the young man looked mesmerised as he retraced the outline of the Rune, his gestures shaky.

"Didn't expect to find _you_ ," Alec rasped, "but I did. You changed everything, even back when I didn't know for sure who you were. In the end, I didn't do it for the reward or for my family. I did it for you."

Magnus didn't say a word, only stared at him with wide, gleaming eyes, until he leaned all the way down to rest his forehead on Alec's hand, still holding onto his own. Slowly so as not to jolt his body and hurt himself, Alec shifted and brought his other hand to Magnus' hair, petting his head softly, running his hand through the dark locks. They remained silent and unmoving, finally at peace together, until he heard Magnus mumble something that he didn't understand.

"What was that?" he asked.

Magnus looked up shyly and Alec felt the grip on his hand tighten. The words that came out of Magnus' mouth next were but a whisper.

"That was me, saying that I love you."

Alec had two very different reactions then, nearly simultaneous. His first, by a few milliseconds only, was to smile with mirth as his heart leapt inside his chest, trying to make its way out and to Magnus' own. The second reaction came as quickly as the sudden happiness vanished and he felt tears well up in his eyes. He was this close to actually weep, desperate now: he would have preferred for Magnus not to say anything, to keep his feelings like a precious secret, for how could Alec ignore words that had been spoken so sincerely?

_I love you too_ , he thought fiercely, close to let it out, and yet he bit his lip, nearly drew blood from his tongue to stay silent, unwilling to break Magnus' heart thoroughly. What else would happen, if he confessed back? If he told the young man just how much he was in love with him, what would that make him other than a cruel person, when he knew and had accepted already that nothing could happen between them? Alec would stay in the hospital for a few days, a few weeks maybe, and then he would be sent on his way. Maybe Asmodeus would even want him back in Idris, just to make sure they never cross paths again.

Whatever the King's punishment turned out to be, there would be no place for Alec in Magnus' life... So he couldn't bring himself to tell Magnus, have him look incredibly happy and then crush this joy in his fist, killing every spark in the Prince's gaze. He didn't want to be responsible for the night in his eyes.

However, Magnus still awaited an answer, his hand clenched on Alec's, and he didn't know what to do, how to avoid the awkwardness that was certain to follow once the younger man realised that he wouldn't get the answer he hoped for - or any answer at all, for that matter. Falling asleep again could have worked or maybe he could pretend to be in sudden, excruciating pain - his heart was, so that was only half a lie - and have Magnus call for a nurse.

He didn't have to do any of that, thankfully: the door of the room suddenly opened and Isabelle walked in, turning around to close the door quickly and not disturb her brother with the noises of the hallway for long, but she didn't snap the panel shut fast enough for him not to notice the guard in front of his room. He briefly wondered who the man was guarding: surely he wasn't there for Alec? However, his brain caught up two seconds after he asked himself that question and he nearly scoffed at his stupid, sluggish brain cells: the guard was not there because Alec was considered dangerous, no. He was keeping an eye on Magnus.

Protocol requested strong security detail when any member of Edom's royal family was on the move. More guards were probably patrolling the hallways of the hospital to ensure a clear path to Magnus once he'd walk out of the room... Alec was glad. Not only did it mean nothing would happen to the Prince but also that his identity had been completely accepted and maybe even confirmed by Asmodeus. Had he requested a DNA test? Or had it been enough for Magnus to show his face?

He didn't deem it proper to ask and besides, it only took Isabelle one glance at their stern faces to still, looking like a deer caught in headlights, before she frowned at them.

"Am I interrupting something?" she worried. "I can swing by later if you want but..."

"It's fine," Magnus said with a smile that, to Alec's dismay, didn't quite reach his eyes. "We were just... talking."

Alec nodded, thankful for his sister's interruption but at the same time, he felt queasy about the way he'd simply ignored Magnus' confession that he knew was no small deed: revealing the depths of his feelings didn't go without bravery. Alec felt like an ass for stomping on that courage that was far superior to his own.

"I just wanted to check that Alec was resting," Isabelle explained, glancing between the two boys with a little smile, "and also to tell you that the King wishes to speak with you, once you're well enough."

"Let him in," Alec answered, fighting a sigh, "I might as well get it over with."

If Magnus wondered what he was hinting at with all that defeat in his voice, he didn't show it, didn't comment on it either, but he did interfere for Alec's sake:

"You don't have to talk to him now, if you feel too tired..."

"I'm fine," the older man said with a dim smile. "We really need to talk, anyway."

And decide of Izzy's and his fate.

"But you're still hurt," Magnus protested, "Alexander, you've got a _hole_ in your chest. I know you like to pretend you're a huge, badass hero who doesn't feel the pain like us mere mortals do but please, don't overdo it."

Alec scowled at that - how many times did he have to repeat that he did _not_ have a hero complex? - but Isabelle snorted. She clearly agreed with Magnus and yet, she looked sorry for him.

"Don't waste your time, Magnus," she said, "he won't back down. My brother doesn't know when to take care of himself. I'll call for Asmodeus."

Magnus looked affronted that neither of the siblings were listening to him and Alec could have sworn that he heard him mutter something that sounded like _what use is it to be royalty if no one obeys you anyway?_ He wasn't wrong.

Alec only had a few minutes - that Magnus spent fuming quietly by his side - to brace himself before Isabelle returned with the King in tow. He tried to muffle an awed gasp at the sight of Asmodeus, whom he hadn't seen up close in fifteen years. Right then, he realised just how much the loss of both his son and his spouse had changed him, hurt him to the depths of what made him _himself_ , not to mention the illness that condemned it to the use of a cane.

"Your Majesty," he said as soon as the King approached his bed, "I would bow if I could but..."

"Don't even think about it," Magnus growled from the side.

Alec's eyes widened when Asmodeus smirked, going around the bed to sit in the chair that Magnus vacated for his father at once, helping him get comfortable before he took the cane and propped it up behind the seat.

"I see that you are in good hands with my son to watch over you," the King said with a chuckle, that didn't hide the pride and happiness in his voice as he mentioned his son. "Hello, Alec... It has been a while, dear boy."

Suddenly intimidated, Alec slowly nodded, without looking the King in the eyes. The weight of his shame was only becoming heavier now, as he sat in front of Asmodeus who had lost so much and hoped for so many years to find a semblance of peace.

"Sorry it took so long," Alec mumbled.

"It doesn't matter now," Asmodeus said firmly, "Magnus is here and I thank you, from the bottom of my heart, for bringing him back and exposing Lorenzo in the process."

The King flashed Isabelle a smile, extending his gratitude to her, and Alec wasn't surprised to see that she seemed to feel less uncomfortable than he did. Izzy had always refused to carry the Lightwoods' burden, after all. Good for her. It would make it easier for her to go back to the outside world feeling completely free of living her best life. He, on the other hand... Well, he would try to manage.

"I'm sorry it was necessary in the first place," Alec whispered, unable to accept the King's easy dismissal of the topic that sounded too much like the forgiveness he didn't think he deserved. "What will happen to Lorenzo?"

"As much as I would like to personally handle his case," Asmodeus answered on a sombre, threatening tone that suddenly made Alec glad to be on the King's good side so far, "I'm afraid there will be a thorough trial before the Court delivers any verdict at all."

Alec nodded, understanding Asmodeus' frustration: it was terrible to have housed a traitor, from his own family no less, and be powerless to punish him for all the pain he had caused. Yet the King was not above the law and Asmodeus couldn't go giving justice himself. To think that this could have been avoided altogether, if only his father had realised that the threats against the royal family didn't come from outside the walls of the palace but from the inside...

"I'm sorry," he said, his hands clenching onto the white sheets of his bed. "I'm sorry my father couldn't prevent all of this, that _we_ couldn't do what we were supposed to do."

Asmodeus paused for a long time and in the silence, Alec caught Izzy's heavy sigh. After a while, the King turned to his son and Isabelle.

"Would you mind leaving us for a while?" he asked softly. "There are certain matters I would like to discuss with Alec alone."

He didn't feel quite reassured when Izzy and Magnus both nodded, albeit hesitantly, and left the bedroom to wait in the hallway. Alec hadn't looked forward to find himself alone with the King, who had every right to get mad at him - even for his father's mistakes, he would say. However, Asmodeus' plans differed a lot from what Alec imagined and when the young man tried to apologise once again, the King raised his hand and the effect was immediate: Alec shut up at once.

"Nothing was your fault in the mess that happened fifteen years ago," Asmodeus told him. "In hindsight, I'm not even sure your father was to blame any more than you are... He never thought that my own family would turn against me. He _couldn't_ have known, except if he had plotted along with them."

"He hadn't," Alec felt compelled to say.

He was unable to keep a hint of bitterness out of his voice and Asmodeus threw him a look akin to one of pity, although Alec suspected there was also shame in those eyes.

"I know," the King answered. "I shouldn't have... reacted the way I did. Banishing your family was probably my biggest mistake but I didn't... My pain clouded my judgement but it didn't justify forcing two kids and their parents into exile, which I realised way too late. Back then, I couldn't imagine that your father was not to blame somehow. I didn't think I would ever enjoy living again, not without my son... You don't know how much joy you have brought me when you took him back home."

When Alec noticed the tears rolling on the King's cheeks, he turned his eyes away to give him the semblance of privacy he needed to collect himself, but Asmodeus wasn't ashamed and didn't try to hide his emotion. Still, Alec let a few seconds pass before he looked at the older man again, just the time _he_ needed to make sure his eyes would remain dry. He didn't have a right to cry for Magnus, even though he understood the joy that the King had mentioned as well as the pain of living without him. Alec only had to imagine his future without Magnus to know, since the mere thought of their upcoming separation wrecked him already.

He coughed to mask the sudden tightness in his throat but the rocking of his chest upset the fragile balance between the pain and the absence of it, making him wince and hiss as his wound seemed to wake up and radiate through his whole body.

"You should rest," Asmodeus said in a perfect but unconscious imitation of Magnus' worried tone as he clenched the arms of the chair to stand up, "Once you feel better, come to the palace. Your sister and you will receive the promised reward, with my gratitude. I, as well as the whole nation, owe you a great debt."

"There is no debt," Alec answered, frowning, growing uneasy again. "We only fulfilled our family's past mission. As for the reward, Your Majesty, I... I don't want it, not anymore. You should give it to Izzy alone, she might need it for her future studies. Or you could give it all to charity, that is your call to make."

The King slowly sat back down, as if Alec's words had pressed down on his shoulders until he'd felt too heavy to move further away. He looked disconcerted.

"I understand that this reward was a source of disagreement between you and my son," he said, making Alec purse his lips at the reminder of what Magnus had thought he was after from the start. "Still... You should accept it. Isabelle and you deserve it."

"I really don't," Alec whispered as a fresh wave of misery washed over him, "The only reward I would seek... is not yours to give."

To his credit, Asmodeus didn't need much time to grasp what Alec was hinting at and in the end, Alec was more surprised by his calm reaction than the King was by the revelation.

"If you speak of Magnus' heart..."

"I do," Alec said before the King could get to the part where he threatened him with the prospect of a slow and painful death if he dared touch Magnus, "and I know I shouldn't count on it. I'm not right for him and you certainly don't want me around him since I..."

Asmodeus' dark glare shut him up at once.

"I will pretend that this is the pain speaking and that the smart boy I once knew hasn't turned into an idiot," he interrupted the young man. "I believe that Magnus alone should decide of what or _who_ is right for him. Oh, and don't imagine that you could possibly know what I think, Alec, you might hurt yourself."

"You... You don't mean that," Alec whispered, hating the hope that Asmodeus had kindled in his chest, his lungs, that made him feel like he could taste happiness on the tip of his tongue but never swallow it down. "My family failed you, failed _him_ , and it doesn't matter that we brought Magnus back, we... We shouldn't even have let him be taken. Also, in case you haven't noticed, I'm a man, which kind of rules me out of anything... official."

Asmodeus rolled his eyes, not even bothering to hide his thoughts regarding Alec's level of intelligence. Suddenly, the young man wanted to laugh: who needed a DNA test to prove that Magnus and the King were family? Witnessing the two men's powerful eye rolls sufficed to establish the truth.

"I know that you're a man, yes," Asmodeus eventually said, "but Alec... You gave me my son back, after fifteen long years of loneliness and grief. Do you really think I would risk making my son miserable after all this time and refuse to accept his bisexuality or the man he loves?"

"B... but..." Alec stammered, not expecting such readiness and acceptance, unable to believe that he could have it all, "What about... public opinion? Or... Or kids? Providing an heir to the throne?"

"Ah, that preposterous, archaic conception of a male bloodline monopolising the throne?" Asmodeus summed up with a smirk. "Adoption is a thing, you know. Edom's monarchy has become quite acquainted with modernism, not to mention that if you hadn't found Magnus, the next King wouldn't have been one of my children anyway. When you've lived a life like mine, with its fair share of pain and hardships, pardon my French but you don't give a fuck about these considerations. All I want is for my family to feel whole again, with Magnus - and you, should you choose to stay."

Alec gaped at him. Did he hear him right? Or was he still high on painkillers? Morphine, maybe? Whatever that nurse had given him, he wanted the same for his next meals, thank you.

"You would accept me?" he asked, his bewilderment making Asmodeus smile and shake his head with fondness. "Us?"

"Yes," he declared, his chin high, his words sincere. "Magnus loves you. He'll need you in this new life, especially once I'm gone. I fear we lost a lot of time already and even though I now have someone worth fighting for, my bone cancer isn't going anywhere. Please, Alec... Don't waste your own time with Magnus in useless fears."

The younger man blinked, feeling his throat dry up once again. Asmodeus wasn't joking nor messing with his head. The King was truly, absolutely positive about including him in his royal life at his son's side. It felt too good to be true, like a dream so vivid it haunted you when you awoke, making you doubt reality, making you wish for fantasy instead. Except that Asmodeus was smiling as if he knew - and he probably did, at that - the effect of his announcement on the younger man.

"Should I call for Magnus?" he asked.

Alec nodded dumbly while Asmodeus limped away. He couldn't believe it and at the same time, he wanted to. Why couldn't he get lucky at least once in his life? Maybe good things did come to him from time to time... And this once, it made everything different: now the decision was easy to make, he didn't have to be afraid, not anymore, he could let his heart speak at last and say the words he'd thought about for so long to Magnus.

"Are you okay?" the latter said when he entered the bedroom alone, looking a bit worried by his father's call.

Alec couldn't have said much if he'd tried, for now his throat felt scratchy and rough, his eyelids too heavy to keep open and yet, he made one last effort and reached out for Magnus, who immediately put his hand in his own. Alec tugged, drawing him in until he stumbled and sat on the bed next to him, and then he grabbed his collar and brought him at face level.

"I love you," Alec whispered close against his lips, making sure that Magnus would be able to taste the words on his mouth, "I love you, I love you, I love you..."

Magnus let out a strangled sound before he kissed him for real, open mouth against open mouth, and Alec smiled as he realised that this could be their future.

  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading so far! See you soon with the final chapter ;)


	19. Epilogue

  


Alec hissed when the fabric of his shirt brushed roughly over the dressings held in place across his chest with medical tape. Once second later, forcing himself to ignore the pulsating pain while he finished buttoning his shirt down, the young man groaned in dismay, glancing at his reflection in the mirror: wasn't that shirt a bit tighter on the front than he remembered? The sleeves were shorter, too... His wince turned into a chuckle at a whiff of spice, as he realised that he'd grabbed Magnus' shirt instead of his own, resulting in this ridiculous look. Magnus' arms were more muscular than his own so the shirt felt loose around the shoulders and biceps, but the chest and wrists... No, really, it didn't fit. Note to self: _do not borrow your lover's clothes no matter how nice it is to have his scent on you_.

A wonder how Magnus' shirt had even ended up in his wardrobe, though: they weren't exactly living together... yet. To be more specific, they didn't share their bedroom, although they both currently lived in the palace. It felt a bit soon to just move in together all the way, when Alec still needed special care from a nurse but mostly because... Well, they didn't know how they would actually react to a domestic life together. Hitting the road and sleeping in the same car while driven by a purpose was one thing but suddenly acting all lovey-dovey with each other in a shared bedroom that was far more comfortable than that of any 5-star hotel? That was another thing entirely.

To be honest, Alec didn't think much would change between Magnus and him, save for the making-out, the sex perhaps at some point - once he wouldn't feel like the slightest pressure on his chest would kill him - and the confessions of love. He didn't think he would ever tire of watching Magnus' face light up whenever he heard the hushed _I love you_ Alec didn't fail to whisper in his ear every day they met over breakfast in the kitchens. He had almost missed his chance to have this so now, he made the most of their time together, however and whenever he could.

Even so, he didn't want his dynamic with Magnus to change. Not too much, anyway. He didn't want their bickering and banter to evolve into something disgustingly sweet, into something in which he would not recognise _them_. He didn't want the old ladies of the court to call them adorable while they cooed at the two of them, no: he wanted to keep the rawness of the emotions they'd shared together, the edgy tension between them that could turn into hungry kisses and heated stares. Only in the sanctuary of a bedroom, his or Magnus' - or _theirs_ , soon - would he let his scowl slip to reveal the tenderness and love that nested in his heart and would only spread their wings for _him_.

Oh God, he _was_ disgustingly sweet, wasn't he?

It would only get worse, or better, he guessed, depending on how one would choose to look at it, once they were ten years into their marriage and knew each other by heart - and the fact that Alec was already considering a wedding said a lot about his feelings and the life he now imagined for himself. After all, it had only been one month since their emotional reunion in an aseptic bedroom... What a month it had been, though!

Over the span of the three weeks after his discharge from the hospital, Alec had relearned all the hallways and secret passages between the aisles of the palace, feeling like a kid again as he pushed tapestries aside and pressed the petal of a wooden rose on the candle holder attached to that special bookshelf in the library. He'd invited Magnus to tag along in his expeditions under the official pretext to help him get more acquainted with his surroundings, as if he had never left the palace at all, and the not-so official reason to make out with him in dark, forgotten passages between two walls.

His doctor hadn't mentioned anything about not kissing his boyfriend during his convalescence so he might as well take advantage of this loophole, even though the erratic breathing resulting from these kisses was certainly not recommended. As long as he didn't faint, he guessed he was safe. After all, his exploration of the palace couldn't cause much more harm than had already been done. He felt fine now, although his endurance was lacking at the moment and he got out of breath far more easily than before but at least, it should only be temporary. He knew he'd gotten lucky.

Very lucky indeed, he thought with a smile when Magnus knocked on the door of his bedroom - a suite, really - and let himself in without waiting for Alec's authorisation. His eyes crinkled when he caught Alec's half-hearted attempt at shrugging off the shirt, clearly liking the way the older man looked into his clothes - even when Alec himself deemed it ridiculous.

"Don't mind me," Magnus said, eyeing his boyfriend's chest with a smile that dimmed at the sight of the bandages. "Please keep going. Do you want some music to set the mood?"

"Not in front of the kid," Alec shot back with a grin, jerking his head towards the tiny ball of fur that was resting over the quilt on his bed, his yellow eyes set on them.

"I think Chairman Meow loves you more than me," Magnus grumbled, plopping down onto the mattress and dislodging his cat, who jumped down with an air of disgruntlement that looked far too human. "See what I mean?"

"Can't fathom why he wouldn't want your company," Alec smirked, finally shrugging on one of his own shirts before he sat on the bed next to Magnus and pecked his mouth.

"Me neither," the younger man whispered, his pouty lips chasing Alec's, one of his arms carefully circling his waist.

Alec pushed deeper into the kiss for a few seconds, until he pulled away and stared at his boyfriend, looking him up and down to find out what the problem was - there had to be one, because Magnus felt tense, much more than he usually did when they started kissing.

"What's wrong?" Alec whispered against his neck, nosing at his jaw.

"Nothing... I'm a bit nervous, that's all."

"About the speech?" Alec guessed.

"Mostly the response to it," Magnus admitted. "I mean, we went over it several times before agreeing on the final cut but... What if they don't accept me?"

Alec didn't answer but he pulled Magnus into a hug, holding him as close as he could without hurting himself. Working with his father on the speech they would give to the people of Edom to reintroduce Magnus had been difficult and emotional on both parts, as they discussed the details of their separation and their life without each other, wondering what to tell, what to keep quiet about. For example, Lorenzo's involvement in the situation could not be kept hidden, for several journalists had heard about his arrest and the upcoming trial. His demise had been made public two weeks ago already but no one outside of the security guards close to Asmodeus and now, his son, knew the exact reasons why the Prince had been so suddenly charged with high treason.

The King had planned to shed some light on that. Alec hadn't seen the final version of the speech Asmodeus and Magnus had filmed with a whole crew in the King's office but he knew about some of the topics they'd broached. Isabelle and he had requested that their own role was not mentioned and he knew their wishes would be respected, although he expected some kind of gratitude to the anonymous heroes who'd brought back the lost heir of Edom home to be expressed.

"They'll take one look at your face and know," Alec tried to reassure him, petting Magnus' wild hair. "They'll be crazy about you, trust me."

Magnus would always live with the fear or not being accepted, he could see that. Once his time as King would come, he would have to work twice as much as Asmodeus had so that his decisions were not questioned, his every word doubted. He hadn't received the education royalty should get, they would say. Then, once they'd make their relationship public, his sexuality would be cause enough to test his authority... Alec guessed it was a good thing that Magnus and his father had decided to wait a little before giving an official statement about their relation, like the PR team wanted... People needed to get reacquainted with their Prince first, to know and trust him before they agreed to follow him and let him lead.

"There are still a few hours until it airs," Alec reminded Magnus, "You'll relax with me and then we'll watch it while cuddling together, how does that sound?"

"You do know how to talk to a man, don't you, Alexander?" the younger laughed, finally relaxing into his boyfriend's embrace.

"Not just any man," Alec replied, muffling his words against Magnus' throat. "Only the most important one."

"Sweet," Magnus snorted, pretending not to be affected, although his cheeks coloured, and then... "I love you."

Every time Magnus said those three little words that had been said so often in the history of mankind yet held all the power of the universe, like an untouched force, Alec felt like he was being shot all over again... only in amazing ways, this time. The heart-stopping, ground-shattering words that Alec revelled into left him breathless, filled with so much happiness he didn't know where to begin to explain it. Sometimes he thought that Magnus would only need one word to thoroughly destroy him and yet, he would gladly step up to meet that sweet end: Alec had once told him about how he felt vulnerable in his arms but didn't take it as weakness - that remained true. It was scary sometimes, to realise just how deeply he trusted Magnus when he had been a perfect stranger not two months ago and how much he would sacrifice, without doubt and without regret, for him.

"Come here," Alec said, carefully sliding down the bed until he was lying flat on his back.

Magnus got the memo and rested his head on his boyfriend's uninjured side, sighing in blissful contentment when Alec kept running his hand through his hair in slow, appeasing caresses. They were aware that allowing someone this close to them, physically and emotionally, was new for them both but they relished the feeling of easy intimacy that often prompted unhindered comments and confessions.

On one of those moments the previous week, Magnus had let Alec know that he found his snores adorable, making the other man grumble something about his reputation while he blushed. Alec had taken revenge by blurting out, and thinking every word, that his eyes were beautiful, that Magnus' whole self was beautiful, and he'd snapped a picture of his awed boyfriend's reaction with his brand new phone.

So really, Magnus shouldn't have been surprised when Alec cleared his throat.

"I was thinking..." he started, shutting up when the younger man chuckled.

"Should I be worried?" he asked, before he whined as Alec stopped petting his hair, "Alright, never mind, pretend I didn't say anything."

"Thought so," the other answered, his grin piercing through his voice as he resumed his caresses. "Seriously... I was talking to Izzy yesterday and I realised that... I'm not sure I'm made for the palace life. Maybe I was once, when I was a kid, but... Not anymore."

Magnus looked up, his face creasing into a mask of concern. He really should have been worried, uh?

"Meaning?" he whispered, trying to hide the sudden fear gripping his heart at the thought that Alec, after a life spent on the run trafficking credit cards and stealing cars with Isabelle, might not want to settle down so quickly.

He failed.

"I'm not going anywhere," Alec snuffed the doubts in his mind before they could develop any further, "I was just wondering if you'd mind... if one day we bought something together on the side. Like a cottage on the countryside, a secret paradise just for us, when being in the capital gets too much for me... or you."

Magnus' frown turned soft at that, as he caught the underlying concern in Alec's voice at the prospect of living in the palace, under the weight of expectations, responsibilities and facades the position of Crown Prince would require. It nearly felt like a matter of survival to have a safe retreat far from the madness of the outside, political world.

"That's a good idea," Magnus finally answered. "A quiet place, two bedrooms. One for us, obviously, and a guest room for Izzy when she comes to visit between two semesters."

A fond smile pushed its way onto Alec's face. He felt all warmed-up inside at the easiness with which Magnus was planning on having his sister over and he already knew that Izzy would love to crash at theirs from time to time, for a peaceful evening around a hearty dinner while she told them everything about her plans to save lives.

"Three bedrooms," Alec firmly negotiated, before he added at Magnus' questioning gaze, "You never know what the future could bring."

Alec hadn't forgotten Asmodeus' words about adoption.

"Three bedrooms," Magnus agreed easily enough, "and another cat."

"Deal," Alec answered, sealing it with a quick kiss across Magnus' lips.

The vibrant smile he got in return was worth more than all the rewards in the world and not for the first time in three weeks, Alec found himself marvelling at his good fortune. As a child, as a teenager, he had never imagined that life could be so sweet, that he could have a bright future. He had gone for so long focusing on his mission only that he had never stopped to think and consider carefully what he would do once it was over - or once he decided to give up. He hadn't believed he could still have a life after bringing Magnus home, not one that was worth living anyway.

Now, however... He could have it all and he was only beginning to understand what it meant, not only for him but also for Magnus and Isabelle, who had always followed him out of loyalty if not out of faith and who deserved everything good the word had to offer. He was proud to bear witness to his sister's dreams coming true while she excitedly visited different schools to pick the best one in terms of medical studies, so she could start next year.

They had discussed trying to get in touch with their parents, too... Alec wasn't too sure why, yet. Prove a point? Rub in their faces that they'd managed where Maryse and Robert had warned them that they would fail? Or maybe mend broken relations and polish the rough edges of shattered childhoods spent watching a drunk father and a disappointed mother fight? It was a difficult task since they had not spoken in years, so Alec wasn't even sure they'd manage to find one another again... Although, if they eventually decided to go through with that project, Izzy and he knew the perfect person to call for help, which Underhill would be all too happy to provide.

To top all that, of course, he had Magnus. Magnus, a home and a kind although still unofficial father-in-law, as well as an aunt-in-law who fussed over them like a mother hen and had insisted on having them for dinner at least once a week as soon as Alec had been well enough to travel. They'd met Jonathan that first time at the mansion and Magnus had been so delighted at having a younger cousin that they'd spent the whole evening chatting together and generally making Alec and Lilith feel like forgotten socks in the washing machine. Not nice.

Still, Lilith had taken advantage of their tête-à-tête to discuss something she and Asmodeus had talked about before, regarding Alec. When she'd told him that they wanted to know if he would consider taking his rightful place as Magnus' Keeper, he had been overwhelmed by the trust they so readily placed in him as well as the fierce desire to protect Magnus, all of that shadowed by a deeply-anchored fear: what if he _failed_ like his father?

He had not given his answer yet. Hadn't even talked to Magnus about it all, quite honestly... Alec didn't think that it would be a wise idea to mix his personal and professional life like that, not contractually at least: he didn't want to always look behind his shoulder whenever they were together, just the two of them, to enjoy their time alone. Even if he was not officially appointed as Magnus' bodyguard though, he knew he was ready to risk his life to keep him safe - he'd proven it before. Not that he was looking forward to do it all over again, of course, but if it ever came down to that... He would, without even thinking about the consequences.

He had time to think about it, thankfully, and he knew that should he give a negative answer, Asmodeus wouldn't mind. It was completely new for Alec, to take his time before making big decisions, to be trusted whatever it would be... and know that his future was not set in stone, that he could choose his own path.

He had all these possibilities now, where he had not seen any before meeting Magnus, and it even felt a bit scary sometimes, to have all that freedom instead of having to choose the only way that presented itself.

Alec glanced at his lover, loose and peaceful in his arms, and he smiled. Yes, he could have it all... but he had Magnus, and it was enough.

  


  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so, so much for reading this story until the end, that is kind of open: it is up to you to imagine what the future will bring for our boys! I had a blast writing this story, even though some parts didn't turn out the exact way I would have wanted them to, and if you enjoyed reading it at least a little, then I guess my job is done ;) Thank you for every kudo, bookmark, comment and retweet, as well as the support you've given me throughout the making of this story, here and on Twitter. Thank you and until next time, to meet again for other adventures!


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